Truth Be Told
by the first x-man
Summary: ****Spoilers***** This is part two of Secrets Withheld. If you have not read that one yet go to my homepage and read it first. The plot thickens as Eugene is forced to face his past and Rapunzel learns the truth behind her kidnapping all those years ago. Rated M for harsh language
1. Chapter 1

A/N- _**STOP!**_ If you have not read the first part, please go back and read that one first. The second part will only confuse you and it would ruin the first one for you, because, well, you would be reading them backwards. The first part is called **Secrets Withheld. **Crappy title, I know. I am sorry but I suck at titles. Hopefully my writing skills will make up for my less than par title names. If you have already read the first part, please enjoy! Happy reading!

I also want to thank everyone for the support on my story. It has gotten better turn out than I thought. Seeing how many people followed and added my story to their favorites only helped me in writing this one. I personally think this one is better quality than the first part. Tell me what y'all think. I also want to thank you for your patients while I finish this. I took me longer than I had liked and it was very frustrating at times, but seeing how many people liked it helped me continue. Comments and critiques are always welcome and very much appreciated.

Chapter 1

"Dad, I wasn't expecting you."

"You called for me." The man walked closer to Eugene's bed. He had a thick Italian accent.

"That was weeks ago. I was expecting you weeks ago." Eugene stated in a calm but stern tone.

"I know, I am sorry, but I got here as quickly as I could. I have some informazioni (information) you might be interested in."

Captain James studied the man that stood a little more than an arms stretch away from him. He was tall and sturdily built. His clothes were quite intricate. His garb was mainly a bluish-grey with a red sash around his waist. He had on leather spaulders that covered his shoulders. There were straps that crisscrossed in front of his chest that secured the spaulders onto his body. On his left shoulder the spaulder was covered with fur that draped over his back. His arms were protected by brown leather bracers which seemed to be hiding something underneath on the inside of his wrists. He wasn't sure but James thought he saw something that looked like a hook on the inside on the man's right wrist. Just below his hips sat a wide leather belt that draped at an angled that held a few pouches in various positions. Inside the belt held two very large and very dangerous looking weapons. One was a large sword and the other a wide short sword. His garb draped down a little below his knees in several layers of panels. He had on brown leather greaves that covered his lower legs and brown boots. His hood still covered most of his face (minus the facial hair and below) which came to a triangular point in the center. His entire garb was then accented with the most beautiful silver embroidery and engravings he had ever seen.

After studying the man in front of him, James finally spoke up.

"I'm sorry, who is this?" There was a bit of confusion and disbelief in his voice.

"Forgive me. Dad, this is Captain James, also my right hand man, James, this is my…father…Ezio Auditore. Ezio finally removed the hood to reveal the rest of his face. He looked about to be in his early to mid-fifties; his hair was salt and peppered. There was a scar on the right side on his upper lip and each crease line in his face told its own tale of sorrow and grief. James took another hard look at the man in front of him and then back to Eugene. He could definitely see the resemblance.

"Father? You have a father?" Eugene blew his cheeks out staring at James.

"Well, yeah about that…" Eugene trailed off scratching his head.

"I thought you said you were an orphan?" James started becoming irritated as his eyes narrowed to Eugene. Eugene put his hands up in defense.

"Ok technically…I was, but before you bite my head off, I can explain-"

"Gabriel we do not have time for this." Ezio interrupted.

"Gabriel?! Who the hell is Gabriel? Who is this man, and why is he here, and WHO THE HELL IS GABRIEL?!"

"Holy shit James. Sit down and shut up. I am trying to tell you."

Ezio slowly started his way towards the frantic captain; hands slightly rose trying to calm him. "Captain, per favore (please), try to calm yourself."

"No, not till I get answers!" The captain looked down at Ezio's hands. He noticed a small symbol on his left ring finger that looked like it had been burned into his finger. He had seen that symbol before. His eyes shot up to meet Ezio's. "It's you!" He pointed an accusing finger toward Ezio as he found himself backed up against Eugene's nightstand. "That was you who killed the King! That was your poisoned dart! I recognized that symbol!" Ezio looked at his finger then raised an eyebrow up toward James. James was about to call for the guards, but just as he exhaled to do so, Ezio lunged at his throat cutting off James's air supply rendering him silent. His left hand came up and with a quick flick of his wrist, James quickly found out what was hiding underneath one of his bracers. A hidden blade, at a deathly fast speed, popped out and was inches away from James's throat. James clawed at Ezio's hand in a vain attempt to free himself of the man's tight grip.

Eugene groaned "Dad could you please not kill my captain. He's the only one I got."

"Only if he stays silent." Ezio growled.

"James he's gonna let you go, but you have to stay quiet, and calm down, understood?" James, the best he could, nodded his head as he gasped for air. Ezio released his grip and James nearly collapsed to the ground had it not been for the strong bed side table he was leaning on. He coughed and sucked in air trying to catch his breath. Ezio and Eugene calmly waited as the captain collected himself. Once he was able to breathe at a somewhat normal rate, James slowly slid down in his chair.

"Ok, now that we have all been acquainted with one another, Dad, you were saying? Ezio walked around to the other side of Eugene's bed.

"Sì, I have found some...interesting…facts that might be of some use to you." His voice took a more serious tone. "Gabriel, I have found out that there is a third Piece of Eden."

"There's a third piece?"

"Sì, it is the piece that gives eternal life." Eugene's eyes widened in disbelief. "I do not have a whole lot to go on, but judging what I could find out in Altiar's library, that was all he knew as well."

"You found his library?"

"Well, yes, there were no books in it, just him and the last key."

"He was still in there?"

"What was left of him." Eugene had a distasteful look flash across his face for a split moment and shook the image out of his head.

Both Ezio and Eugene had seemed to forget the James was still in the room.

"What…in the hell…are…you…two…talking about?" The both looked over to James and then exchanged looks with each other.

"Ok, James, what you are about to hear-" Ezio interrupted Eugene with a grunt.

"Gabriel, sei sicuro che possiamo fidarci di lui? (Gabriel, are you sure we can trust him?)"

"Sono sicuro che onestamente, è probabilmente l'unica persona che posso fidare giusto al momento con informazioni di questo tipo. (I'm sure. Honestly, he is probably the only other person I can trust right at the moment with information like this.)"

Captain James sat gawking at the two exchanging words back and forth in Italian. His head spun with questions and a migraine formed from the recent lack of oxygen to his brain. They finished arguing (or what sounded like arguing) and Eugene looked back at him.

"You are not to utter a word to anyone about what is said in this room. What is said in this room, stays in this room, is that understood?"

James wasn't so sure he liked where this was going. The last time his king was secretive, he ended up getting killed. He was tired of all the lying, and the secrecy. Why couldn't people be honest for once? But what choice did he have. At least this time, he would know what was going on instead of being shoved into the dark. However, he was pretty sure that he will be in the dark a lot more than Ezio and Eugene would let on.

"Ok, fine you have my word."

"Alright. My full _real_ name is Gabriel Eugene Auditore da Venezia. My father and I are a part of a Brotherhood called Assassin's."

"The Assassin's?"

"You know of us?" Ezio asked.

"Well, I have heard of the Assassin's, but I thought they were only a myth."

"Most definitely not, we are very much real and so is the danger everyone is in right now." Eugene stressed.

"What do you mean?"

"There are these artifacts," Ezio started, "called Pieces of Eden. Up until now, everyone thought there had only been two; a Staff and the Apple. These two pieces are very powerful and can be very dangerous if put into the wrong hands. But now there are three; the Power of Youth. With all three of these artifacts put together, one could truly accomplish world domination." James tried to understand everything that was just said to him. Despite Ezio's strong Italian accent, it was difficult to process.

"So…who is trying to take it?"

Eugene continued. "Just like there are Assassins there is a group called the Templars. They are also a secret society hidden everywhere just like Assassin's. The only difference between them and us is we are not trying to take over the world. In fact, we are trying to protect it. And we have been trying to do so for hundreds of years. This fight isn't something that just started. This has been going on for, well, since before the Crusades. No one is quite sure when it all happened, but we have been able to date back to then. This war between the Templars and the Assassin's has been kept a secret among ourselves for as long as this war has been going on. We fight among the people, yet the citizens are none the wiser."

"Why?"

"A few reasons," Eugene explained, "the Templars like to keep people in the dark. They feel that if people are in the dark no one will question what they are doing and they can easily take over the common population that is not really 'awake' to what is going on. It is kind of like the saying 'out of sight out of mind'. Assassin's keep it hidden to keep from causing mass panic across the way. There are few that are very much aware to what is going on. Most citizens, however, don't want to be involved in the fight, but sometimes, we get someone who is tired of being pushed around and deceived by their own government and want to join the Brotherhood."

"The government?"

Ezio spoke. "Most of the Templars take over the government. It is the easiest way to take over a population. And unfortunately, there are Templars in your kingdom. Your late king was part of them."

"Now wait a minute, you cannot tell me that Daniel wanted to take over the kingdom and deceive everyone and, and, help these…Templars take over the world. That is just preposterous. He was a good king, with an honest heart. He loved his people."

"James, he is not saying Daniel wasn't a good person, he just got himself mixed into all of this. Remember I told you that he got himself mixed up with a group of people that he shouldn't have. But, unfortunately he found himself on the side of the Templars, whether he meant to or not. Quite honestly, I think he was forced to. We are a small kingdom, and we don't have much pull when it comes to enemies like that and I think Daniel was only doing what he thought was best without wiping out his kingdom. He had no idea what he was up against. Unfortunately, most countries don't when they get taken over."

"That still doesn't explain why you had to kill Daniel."

"Because if I hadn't, the Templars would have gotten to him." Ezio explained. "Mi creda, (Believe me) I killed your king in less painful way than the Templars would have. Most of them experiment with torcher. It would have not ended well for him if the Templars had captured him."

"He's right James. I have seen them do some pretty despicable things to people."

"Ezio, how did you know to be here and when?"

"Gabriel sent me a message asking for my help. Along my way I was able to track down some evidence that led me to believe that we were dealing with highly dangerous Templars. "

"Like what?"

"I had overheard a conversation about your king. He had been ordered to kill, I think his exact words were 'that nosey brat', I could only assume he meant you, Gabriel." Eugene rolled his eyes. "When I followed one of the men in the conversation he had delivered a letter to a man, Sir Ivan, saying the order on the king to kill you was going to be carried out that night.

"Ivan? Oh!" Eugene snapped his fingers as he remembered. "That was one of the councilmen at the ball that night." James looked at Eugene confused. "Remember that night I talked to you at the tavern and you reminded me of the ball that was going on that night?" James nodded his head. "There were three men that were attached to Daniel's hip nearly the entire night. I had asked Rapunzel about them and one of them was Sir Ivan, but that wasn't the one I met. I met another man that Rapunzel introduced me to."

"Who was it?" Ezio asked.

"It was Gregor…Bachev, yeah Sir Gregor Bachev. He was definitely a Templar he wore the Templar ring I remember seeing it."

"And who was the other man, you said there were three?"

"Sir Granthom was his name. I don't know for sure if the other two were Templars, but I only assumed due to association and the fact that they all three conveniently disappeared sometime after Daniel died."

"Well, they are still here somewhere in the city or at least close by. I, unfortunately, was not able to follow anyone back to their hide-out. Ivan is very smart, he's always watched his back and he knows how the Assassins work. I am surprised I wasn't found when I followed his messenger back to him."

"I thought it would be Gregor that would be the head of the operation. When I saw Ivan he seemed more like a tag along, just one of Gregor pawns."

"That is what Ivan would like everyone to think. I have encountered Ivan before. The fact is Ivan is very dangerous. He enjoys taking in prisoners and torturing them in the most unspeakable ways. Leonardo had the unfortunate opportunity of being one of his test subjects a few years back."

"Is he ok?"

"Yes, luckily I was able to get to him in time, but not before Ivan tested his stretch rack on Leonardo."

"Stretch rack? What's that?" James asked.

"Basically all four of your limbs are tied in opposite directions and you are stretched until nearly every joint in your body is dislocated, and sometimes if your captor is really cruel they will keep going." Eugene explained. Just thinking about it made James cringe in pain rubbing his shoulder and elbow. "How bad was he when you got to him?"

"Fortunately, I got to him in time before Ivan could do any permanent damage, but that is not to say he wasn't sore for a while."

"What about that third artifact did you find out exactly what it is?"

"It is supposedly some form of flower, I think."

"I was afraid you were going to say that." Eugene mumbled. "Well unless there is another, that one is gone." Ezio shot a look toward Eugene.

"What do you mean gone." Eugene took a deep breath.

"Rapunzel, the princess here, she once had the power for eternal youth, but about two years ago she…lost it." Ezio was confused.

"What do you mean 'lost it'?"

Eugene explained to his father about Rapunzel's kidnapping and why and how Daniel had been a part of it. He told him of how Gothel had kept Rapunzel locked away for eighteen years and how no one was able to "find" her.

"So when she had made the promise to go with Gothel willing if she was able to heal me, that is when I sliced through her hair with a broken piece of glass and it turned brown and she hasn't had any power since.

"But she was still able to heal you somehow?"

"That part I really don't remember. It is kinda hazy there in the middle. I don't know how I was able to come back and I never asked her. I never really wanted to know. I was afraid that she may have done something that would be irreversible, something that I wouldn't be able to fix."

"Don't you think now would be a good time to ask her?"

"There is only one problem. Dad, she doesn't know any of this. I haven't told her." Ezio glared at his son.

"You what?" Ezio's tone was flat and stern.

"Look trust me you have no idea how badly I wanted to say something, but at the time when I could say something I had nothing to really tell her. By the time I did have something to tell her it was too late. What I need to do is go get that book in Daniels office. I never got a chance to go through the whole thing.

"No, you stay here, I will get it." Ezio ordered. "You need your rest. You still haven't gotten your strength back yet and I am going to need you at your best when the time comes."

"No really I need to get out of here I have been cooped up for way too long."

"Non discutere con me. (Don't argue with me.)"

"But-"

"Gabriel!" Ezio's tone became stern again. Eugene was about to say something again, but decided against it. He only glared back at his father.

"Yes sir."

"Where did you hide the book?"

"In the desk." Eugene said coldly.

"Where, Rider, I tore that desk apart and I didn't find it."

"There's a broken panel under the drawers, I hid it in there."

"Buona (Good). Captain, would you mind escorting me to your king's office please? I feel I would get harassed a lot less by your guards if you were with me."

James nodded his head. He was a little surprised at how Eugene just gave up so easily. As the two walked out of Eugene's room and shut the door, James stopped Ezio for a moment.

"How, how did you do that?"

Ezio shook his head. "Do what?"

"Just make him obey like that. I can't get him to do anything without having an hour long argument, and the only person I have seen him say 'yes sir' to was Daniel." Ezio just smiled.

"He is my son, he knows better than to argue with me." James smiled and gave a small laugh. They continued down the hall.

"Look, I know you said that you had to kill Daniel, but I was curious, he didn't…he wasn't in pain…when he died…was he?"

"No, it was painless."

James sighed in relief. Ezio's mind drifted back to that night. He had seen a lot in his life time. He had seen his fair share of full grown men brought to their knees by pain and agony. Ezio had never faltered from the horrible things had seen. But nothing had ever prepared him for what he witnessed that night, and he will never forget it.

_Ezio raced across the roof tops as fast as he could; jumping and leaping making as little noise as possible so not draw attention from the guards. Just up ahead he could see the dim light through the window. Ezio hid in the shadows as guards patrolled through the kingdom. He finally made it to a tree that was right outside the window. Ezio had to strain his vision a bit but he could make out his son near the desk. Ezio crouched on a long branch inching his way closer to the window. The drapes were partially drawn but there was just enough of an opening that Ezio could look through. He saw a man, whom Ezio assumed was the king judging by what he was wearing, lash out at his son. He watched for a minute to see what was going to happen next. He wasn't sure if Eugene knew about the hit ordered on him. The king embraced him. Just when Ezio thought Eugene was safe, he saw the knife and his son twisted in pain as it penetrated through him. Ezio wanted to scream, he wanted to run to his son and protect him. Ezio's heart pounded in his chest, as he fought the urge to leap in through the window. But he knew he couldn't. He could only do one thing. With tears in his eyes he raised his right hand up flat to the window. He took his aim, and with a flick of his wrist released a poisoned dart that found its target. Ezio watched his son writhe on the floor. It seemed like a life time before he noticed someone walk into the room only to run out screaming. He heard the screaming travel outside. Moments later he saw another man come running in. Ezio knew he needed to leave before someone found him, but he couldn't. He had to stay to make sure his son was alive. The man's efforts seemed fruitless as he worked and worked to bring Eugene back. Just as Ezio was about to give into defeat, Eugene took in a breath. Ezio's heart leapt, and he took a breath of relief, but he knew he could not stay any longer. Ezio climbed higher up the tree he was perched on to the top of the roof. He stayed hidden and quiet within the shadows. _

_For weeks Ezio watched quietly and undetected as he witnessed his son fight to survive. Through his bedroom window he waited and watched for any sign to show that Eugene would pull through. As the doctor fought to hold his son down on the bed, Ezio prayed and a tear fell unchecked. "Dio, per favore aiutatemi mio figlio. (God, please help my son.)" _

A/N-Ok, so yes, this is a crossover between Tangled and the Ubisoft game Assassin's Creed. I didn't want to categorize it as a crossover for fear that someone might figure it out. I don't like to give a lot of things away. So sorry if that annoys anyone. If you are familiar with Assassin's Creed great, you will be able to relate that much more. If you are not, don't fret, everything will be explained. Just keep reading. I hope you guys are enjoying the story. Comments are always welcome.

Yes, I changed Eugene's name. If it gets confusing I am sorry. I will be sure to clear everything up soon. Don't worry I didn't change is his name just because I could. Well, I mean I did but it will tie in with the plot. I promise. Just keep reading. It will all make sense later. I will tell you this; Ezio will be the only one referring to Eugene as Gabriel apart from some side characters that I will introduce later. Hopefully this won't ruin the story for you, but I am going to take a chance and run with it. I am a little nervous about doing it but hey, we can't always play it safe right? However, during narration I will refer to him as Eugene, and so will Rapunzel. That way it doesn't get too confusing. Either way, just remember that Eugene, Gabriel, and Rider are all the same person. As you already know Captain James is the only one who calls him 'Rider' for obvious reasons.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter. 2

"I told you, I told you we should have killed him sooner, now look what you have done! That damn Assassin is here!" Sir Ivan lashed at Sir Gregor with a knife.

"I can fix it." Gregor was backed into a corner. Ivan seemed like a harmless man, but he was not to be trifled with.

"No! It is too late for that. I told you, I warned you about that boy, but you underestimated him. I told we should have killed him when we had the chance! But you wanted to wait didn't you, you wanted to have the king kill the boy. What was it you said, it would take care of them both?" Ivan cut Gregor several times across the face and several times across the arms. "Now, not only is Ezio here, but that boy is his son, and do you know what that means?" Gregor shook his head fearfully. "It means that not only did you fail me in killing him, but you failed in killing him twenty-one years ago. You said he died in that fire, you checked it yourself. So you have just created two problems for me, not only is that boy now crowned king of Corona, he is a BLOODY ASSASSIN!"

"Please, just let me have another chance. Don't kill me" An evil grin started to spread across Ivan's face. Gregor shook with fear. He knew what was coming next.

"Don't worry. By the time I am done with you, you will be begging for death."

"No please-"

"Granthom! Bring Sir Gregor Bachev to my chambers." Granthom who had been sitting in a chair watching the confrontation, walked over and grabbed the shaken thin man by the arms and nearly dragged him out of the door to the chambers down below. Gregor begged and pleaded as he was mercilessly shoved out the door. His screams could be heard all the way down the hall.

"NO! YOU CAN'T DO THIS! NOOO, NOOOOOoooooo!"

* * *

Ezio and Captain James made their way up to Daniel's office. As they walked in memories came flooding back in for the both of them. Both had very different experiences, but one thing they had in common was that neither of them wanted to be in there. Ezio and James stood there for a moment before either of them moved, lost in thought. The blood stain was still somewhat visible on the carpet, and the glass to the broken window had not yet been replaced. Ezio was the first to walk in over to the desk and started looking for the loose panel.

"I already looked through that entire desk, I didn't find it."

"Yes, but if I know my Gabriel, he has a knack for hiding things very well. It's here we just aren't looking hard enough." Ezio continued his search. James laughed a little.

"That must have been a trifling time for you. I can imagine him hiding things on you when he was a kid."

"Well...being able to hide things well also comes with finding things well. It didn't matter what it was that I tried to keep away from him he managed to find it. It could be anything from my weapons, to hidden entrances, to my secret stash of fine wines and liquors." Ezio lay on his back underneath the desk still continuing his search.

"Hahaha, oh wow, I can only imagine how your arguments went. It couldn't have ended well."

"Well, he and I never really fought much. There was only one time Gabriel had the nerve to pick a fight with me. He was about fifteen, maybe sixteen years old. He learned very quickly that I am the father in this relationship and what I say goes whether he likes it or not."

"What was the fight about?"

"Oh, that is a story for another time, but I will say this, it was the last time he questioned my authority. I had him running back and forth and scaling buildings until he was no longer able to hold his arms up."

"HAHAHA! I would have loved to see that. I have to try that next time he wants to pick a fight with me."

"Oh? You and him go at each other quite a bit, huh?"

"He turned it into a game after a while. He would take bets with the other troops to see how long it would take to get me pissed off at him." Ezio laughed.

"Sì, that sounds like something Gabriel would do. But I will tell you that making him do any physical conditioning for punishment is pointless anymore. I trained him on how to keep his endurance up no matter what he is doing."

"Well, that explains a few things. He decided he was going to skip work that day to be with Rapunzel, and when he got back, I had him doing push-ups for an hour. The kid never broke a sweat. In fact he one-upped me and pushed himself up enough to where he could clap his hands in between repetitions. That made me so mad."

"Hehehe." Ezio finally found the broken panel on the bottom of the desk. He reached his hand in and found the book. "AH-HA! Here it is."

"Huh, you weren't kidding when you said he knew how to hide things."

"He is a master at it. Now let's see what we have in here." Ezio opened up the book. He started flipping through the loose pieces of paper. Then something caught his eye. "Oh merda! (Oh shit)" James walked over to the desk. He looked down at what Ezio held in his hands.

"What the hell is that?"

Rapunzel carefully carried a tray of food to Eugene's room. She knocked but when she got no answer she quietly opened the door and crept in. Eugene was halfway propped up on pillows head to the side and his right arm dangling off to the side of the bed as a piece of paper slipped from his fingers. Stacks of paper littered his bed. Rapunzel placed the tray on a table and sat on the bed next to Eugene. As he slept she watched him and studied him. Eugene had been put through so much that even in sleep he looked exhausted. Rapunzel did everything she could to help him, but it never seemed like enough. The past few weeks she couldn't help but feel like he was hiding something from her. He was constantly talking quietly amongst James and when she would come near, he would instantly stop. She was already worried and stressed over the events that had occurred the last month, this only added to her stress. She wasn't sure how much she would be able to take. Her mother was still grieving over the loss of her husband, and Eugene was barely there anymore. She continued to rely on her own inner strength to help her get through the day, but she wasn't sure how much she would be able to keep it up before she completely broke down. Rapunzel brushed Eugene's soft bangs with her fingertips. He stirred slightly and then started moving his head with her hand as he felt her touch. Rapunzel smiled slightly as her heart sank. She missed him so much. Eugene's eyes slowly opened. He gave her a sleepy smile.

"Hey Blondie."

"Hey yourself."

Eugene took her hand and nuzzled it as he gently laid his head on it. Rapunzel leaned down and kissed his cheek. She rested her head on him for a moment. Eugene felt something wet fall on his cheek and trickle down his face.

"Rapunzel?" She sat up. Eugene noticed she was crying. "Sweetheart what's wrong?" Eugene hated seeing Rapunzel cry.

She sniffled slightly. "It's just…I…" Then all at once everything came out. Rapunzel finally broke down. She cried into Eugene's chest and he held her as best as he could. He stroked the top of her head and gently kissed her. Eu-Eugene…I'm so s-scared." Her voice was slightly muffled as she bawled into his shirt.

"About what?" She leaned up wiping her eyes trying to control her breathing.

"Everything. I don't know what is going on, I almost lost you for a second time, my father is gone and my mother is all but lost. She said she is fine, but I know she's not. I hear her crying at night, and she barely eats. There is still so much I have to learn with my tutoring and I can't concentrate, and you. You have been so busy with everything and…I feel like…there is something you are not…telling me." Eugene avoided looking directly into Rapunzel's eyes. He knew he couldn't keep up his charade for much longer, and it killed him having to lie to her.

"Look, I know I haven't been there for you in the last few weeks, and I am sorry. I really am, but…there are just some things that…" He didn't know what to say, there were so many things to tell her that he didn't know how to get it all out. "Listen there's some things that I am trying to figure out. This is a lot for just one person to handle and I know you are trying to balance a lot on your shoulders right now, but I promise you will-"

James and Ezio suddenly came through the door. Rapunzel questioningly looked towards Ezio. She had never seen him before, and he looked rather odd. He held a black book and James had a rather guilty look on his face.

"Eugene who is that?" She whispered pointing to Ezio.

"That's um…just…someone that is helping me with…you father's murder." Rapunzel's head snapped back at Eugene.

"Have you found anything?" She sounded anxious. Eugene faltered.

"We don't know yet. Um, listen I'm sorry, please, I need you to go right now."

"What, why? If it is about my father I want to be here for it."

"Rapunzel, please, I promise you when I have all the information I will tell you, but I need you to go right now."

Rapunzel stared at Eugene in disbelief. She had never felt so insulted before, even more so than when Gothel berated her with constant criticism and insults. Maybe because it was coming from the last person she ever thought would do this to her. Who did he think he was keeping something like this from her as if she was a child? Rapunzel gave Eugene one last glare before she scoffed and stormed out of the room and slammed the door shut causing the three left in the room to jump a little. The bang shook the glass doors to the balcony. Any harder and it might have shattered them. It was quiet for a minute, before James spoke up.

"On that note this is what-"

Eugene quickly cut him off waving his hand to him and putting his finger to his lips. Eugene ears twitched. It was a few minutes that everyone stayed silent before he heard the quiet patter outside the door fading away. Ezio nodded his head.

"Sorry, I knew she was going to try to listen through the door."

"How did you know that?"

"Because I know Rapunzel. So let's just stay quiet." Ezio and James walked up to Eugene's bed. "So, I see you finally found it."

"Sì we have. Gabriel, did you take a look at everything in the book?"

"No, not all of it. I didn't get the chance. I just saw the Declaration of War, a letter to Gothel, and the Templar symbol. What did you find?"

"A lot. First of all, the name Gothel kept sounding familiar. Then I remembered Gothel use to be an Assassin."

"What!"

"Yes, she used to work with Altair. The story goes, from what I have been told, is that she was on the search for the Flower of Youth. When she found it she was supposed to take it back to Altair. Unfortunately she became so obsessed with the thought of eternal life that she went rouge. She turned against the Assassins and betrayed Altair, and from what I hear, it nearly cost him his life."

"I'm sorry, who is Altair?" James asked.

"His name is Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad. He is a very famous Assassin." Eugene explained. "His time was during the Crusades, hundreds of years ago. He became a Master Assassin and mentor which is the highest rank an Assassin can become. He became a master Assassin but then got knocked down to novice because he broke the three most important rules to being an Assassin."

"What are the rules?"

"Stay your blade from the flesh of an innocent, hide in plain sight, and never compromise the Brotherhood. Altair broke every one of those rules. He ended up having to go back to the beginning and rebuild his rank and trust with his mentor by having to kill nine high ranking Templars. Although, looking back on it, it was kind of a good thing."

"Why is that?"

"Through the process of killing these Templars, he found out that his mentor, Rashid ad-Din Sinan, or more commonly known as Al Mualim, went rogue himself. Al Mualim found the Apple, which is one of the Pieces of Eden, and took it for himself, and controlled his own people with it. Altair ended up killing his mentor. He then became a Mater Assassin and a mentor himself and taking charge of Masyaf which is where the Assassin's headquarters was. Unfortunately it is now overrun by Templars."

"These…'Pieces of Eden' I still don't understand what they are?"

"They are artifacts made by the first civilization, who were considered to be gods." Ezio stated. "They had slaves and they used the artifacts to control the minds and bodies of their slaves. Though we don't know a whole lot about them or the first civilization we do know that whoever holds these artifacts can control anyone at their will. However, from personal experience, if used to an excessive amount the Apple can cause harm to the one who holds it. The apple is powered by the energy form the one who wields it. So far we have found the Staff and the Apple, and now apparently the Flower."

"I am having a hard time trying to connect everything here." James' head felt like it was spinning.

"Well to be honest," Eugene continued, "It doesn't help that we don't have all of the information. I mean what else did you find out in that book?" Ezio sat in a chair next to Eugene.

"Well, I did find the declaration you were talking about. The kingdom that "declared war" doesn't even exist." Eugene looked confused.

"What are you talking?" Ezio pulled the paper from the book and handed it to Eugene.

"Here, hold it up to the light." Eugene held up the paper to the light coming from the windows. As he looked he saw a faded watermark of the Templar cross. Eugene's jaw dropped.

"Those clever bastards. I shoulda known."

"Don't feel too bad. It took me a while before I found it." Ezio said. James took the paper and did the same, however, was not as surprised.

"Wait, I don't understand." James said

"The Templars recently, from what I have noticed, have been "creating" kingdoms for loyalty purposes." Ezio explained. "When a kingdom is in debt, which your kingdom seemed to be in for quite some time, the Templars will conjure up kingdoms that are able to offer things such as money to struggling kingdoms. When the struggling kingdom is not able pay back their debt in the time allotted, they "declare war" on them. Then the Templars come in saying they can possibly help and negotiate to call off the war and clear their debt. The only thing the Templars ask in return is the loyalty from the royal family.

"So basically Daniel was a pawn in Ivan's plan to take over Corona. With Daniel being the front man Ivan was the puppeteer in this whole thing with no one questioning."

"Esattamente. (Exactly.)"

James took in a deep breath and let it out slow. Then he put his head in his hands and groaned. "This is too much to take in."

"Oh how the plot thickens. What else did you find out in there?" Ezio pulled out a rolled up scroll.

"This is something I was very surprised to see." He handed the scroll to Eugene.

"Oh wow!" He looked up at his father in astonishment. "It's a codex page!"

"Yes, I have no idea how Daniel got a hold of one of these. I myself have found it difficult to find them and have only come across a small handful." Eugene looked over the page intently.

"Well, it is gonna take me a bit and I may not be able to crack the entire page, but I will give it a shot. It has been a while since I have cracked a codex."

"You know how to decipher one of these?"

"Yeah, Leo taught me."

"Hmm, impressive." James slowly raised his head back out of his hands.

"What the hell is a codex page and who is Leo?" James asked exasperated. Eugene couldn't help but laugh a little at James's frustration.

"A codex page is an encrypted message that Altair left behind for other Assassins to decipher. They hold all kinds of information, how to make certain weapons, things about the past, even a map to new lands that no one has discovered yet. And Leonardo…how do I explain Uncle Leo? He's a…he's an interesting character. Incredibly smart though, practically a genius. He studies in areas of art, science, math, anatomy, medicine, engineering…all sorts of stuff. He one time made this machine that Dad was able to fly."

"Really, you could fly?"

"Sì, unfortunately it didn't last very long though, I think it caught on fire. So, how long do you think it will be before you can decipher that?"

"I have no idea, but leave me alone and I might actually get it done faster." Ezio quickly picked up on Eugene's sarcasm. He leaned forward in his chair, and with quickness, slapped Eugene up side his head. With a grunt Eugene glared at his father and rubbed the side of his head.

"Let me know when you have finished. I have some things to take care of and a few messages to send." Both James and Ezio got up and headed for the door. Before Ezio opened the door he turned.

"Gabriel." He looked up from the codex page. "Hai ancora tutto con voi? (Do you still have everything with you?)" Eugene nodded his head.

James looked at Eugene and then Ezio and just shook his head. 'I gotta learn Italian.' He thought as he walked out and shut the door behind him.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"Sire? Sire? Did you hear us?"

Never in a million years did Eugene ever think he would be called 'sire', or 'majesty', or any other title that came with being a king let alone become royal in the first place. He still wasn't used to it. So when one of the councilmen was trying to get his attention, it took a tap from Captain James to shake him from his thoughts.

"Huh? I'm sorry, what?"

"Do you approve of our plans?" Eugene stared around the table at the four councilmen who stared back.

"Plans for what?" The councilmen all exchanged glances with each other.

"The plans to build the new dam that we have been discussing about for the last hour."

Eugene had been drifting in and out of the conversation. He vaguely remembered something about the dam that he had been a part of destroying. That triggered one memory which then resulted in a chain effect of drifting off into other memories causing him to completely lose track of everything. Eugene stared at them blankly.

"Why are we talking about this?" The councilmen looked confused

"I'm sorry, Sir?"

"Why are we talking about a dam that has been broken for over two years now that isn't harming anything? Shouldn't we be discussing more important matters?"

"You mean like finding the one who killed the late King Daniel?" The man's condescending tone was aimed toward Captain James. James glowered back at him.

"I'm speaking more directly of our own people."

"What about them?" Eugene looked at the councilmen like he was an idiot.

"What about them, what do you mean what about them? Have you forgotten that they exist?" Eugene was starting to get irritated quickly. "Do you four not go outside these walls, or are you so completely ignorant to the fact that we have an entire section of our city that looks like it just got hit by a plague epidemic?"

"What would you like us to do, Sire?"

"Oh, I don't know, maybe use some of that tax money we get every year to rebuild roads, get more doctors in place, and fix up the orphan shelter that's out there. C'mon guys use your head." His sarcasm was clearly noted by everyone, including James who couldn't help but shake his head. The four councilmen started packing their plans up. It was clear to everyone that their meeting was adjourned for the moment.

"We will draw up some plans and show them to you so that you may approve them." Eugene barely acknowledged their departure as he casually waved them away.

"Yeah you do that." He laid his head down on the table and groaned.

"You outta just try and get along with people. It makes life just…so much easier."

"I am surrounded by idiots."

"You know for a man, you are pretty dramatic." Eugene brought his head back up off the table to face James.

"No, this is ridiculous, they are all fired, I am getting myself a new council, they're gone."

"You can't do that."

"Yes I can and I will."

"There are rules, Rider."

"No, I don't give a shit. I can't… seriously…how are they that brainless and become the council of our kingdom? This really makes me question Daniel-"

"Don't… you dare…talk about Daniel like that." Eugene sighed guiltily. Regardless of the mess Daniel ended up getting himself into, James still respected and missed his dear friend.

"Sorry, just a little stressed out."

"It's alright. Why don't you get up and walk around. You have been cooped up in this place for a while, go get some fresh air. Then we can talk over some things over a drink how about that?" Eugene smiled.

"Yeah, I guess I owe ya one."

"And don't think I have forgotten either." James slapped Eugene on the back as he got up. He headed towards the door, but just before James walked out he turned to Eugene who was still sitting at the head of the conference table. "Hey." Eugene looked towards James. "It's gonna be alright, Kid." Eugene smiled slightly.

"I hope so." James tuned and headed down the hall leaving Eugene with his thoughts.

Eugene finally decided he couldn't stand being inside any longer. Never has he felt so trapped before, not even in a jail cell. He got up slow. His stomach was still a little sore and sensitive to the touch but he was able to eat regular food now and was able to walk on his own without the aid of anyone else holding him up. It had been a few weeks since he was not on strict orders from Doctor Menken to be on bed rest. Though it took some bargaining and pleading on Eugene's part, but he managed to get his way out of one more week on bed rest. He still had his bandages changed out every day, but he didn't need the tea anymore for the pain unless he somehow strained himself. But with the amount of people constantly on their guard for him there was no way he would be able to stub his toe without someone making a big fuss and making him sit and rest. It was nice to finally be on his own again. It felt liberating.

Eugene made his way out toward the gardens. It was one of Rapunzel's favorite places in the kingdom to go to, and he half expected her to be there. When he found that she wasn't there he sat on the side of the garden fountain and enjoyed the peacefulness. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath in taking in the silence. Unfortunately, it was short lived. He opened his eyes realizing that he was not alone.

"You don't have to stalk me. I know you're there." Eugene twisted slightly around to see Ezio stepping out from one of the bushes. He followed him as Ezio walked around the fountain to face Eugene.

"I just have to make sure we are alone."

"So where have you disappeared to for the last few weeks." Eugene said with slight irritation.

Ezio sat next to Eugene on the fountain side.

"I sent a message to some of my men. I need to get you and Rapunzel out of here."

"What, why?"

"It's not safe here for either of you." Eugene was still a little confused.

"Have you heard something?"

"No, not exactly."

"Then I we are not leaving." Ezio hesitated for a minute before answering.

"Please, Gabriel, just trust me-"

"No, I have been taking your orders for years without question. If you haven't noticed I am now solely responsible for this place. I can't just pick up and leave because "daddy" told me to do so. Give me one good reason why I have to leave."

"Ivan and his men are laying low at the moment. He knows that I am here and he most likely knows who you are by now. He also knows if he shows his face he will be dead. He is just waiting until everyone's guard is down to strike. The minute you let down your guard all hell break loose. The sooner we can get you two out of here the better."

"Yeah? What about the rest of my kingdom? What the hell am I supposed to do with them?"

"If you leave they will be protected. Ivan is a smart man he will find you and the princess gone. They will come looking for us and the fight will stay away from your kingdom. You know that the Templars want to stay hidden just as much as we do. They will not bring this fight out in the open unless they have to. Besides, James seems to be a level headed leader. I am sure he can lead in your stead until you return. Also, I know for a fact that, if Rapunzel leaves, you will want to be the one that watches over her because I know you won't trust anyone else to do it. E sono corrette? (Am I correct?)" Eugene's eyes shifted towards Ezio. He sighed.

"But Rapunzel doesn't have any more powers. She is pretty much useless to them, and if Ivan is as smart as we think he is he should know that Rapunzel can't do anything. So why would he be coming after her?"

"I don't know, Gabriel, I don't have all the answers. Maybe she isn't even the one he is after." Eugene hadn't thought of that.

Eugene hated admitting it, but his father was right. If he wanted to protect Rapunzel and protect his kingdom he needed to get the fight away from Corona. He had no other choice but to leave. He couldn't help feel like this was the coward's way of dealing with this, but there was no other way. Eugene ran his fingers through his hair and sighed.

"When are we leaving?"

"My men should be here very soon. I need you to be ready at a moment's notice. Have you talked to Rapunzel about this?" Eugene groaned and dropped his head.

"Nooo."

"Why not?"

"Dad how the hell would you even start that conversation? 'Oh hey honey, here is some information about your father that might interest you.' I mean come on, it's not gonna go over real well."

"Have you even asked her to marry you yet?"

"No."

"Who are you? I thought my son was smart than this. Why haven't you asked her yet?

"First of all, you don't have a say or the right to talk to me about relationships of any sort. Secondly, she has been locked up for most of her life. I was the first person other than Gothel she ever encountered with. You really think she is going to immediately marry the first person she meets? I want to give her some time and space to figure things out on her own. Everything is still kind of new to her. She has been pushed and pulled in so many directions she needs to figure it out herself first. I can't rush things with her."

"You really love her don't you?" Eugene nodded his head. "A little word of advice, don't take too long. Chances are she is waiting on you." Ezio stood up. "You need to get your equipment ready. And tell Rapunzel." Ezio started walking away in the direction he came from.

"Where are you going?"

"To find the best way out of this city." Ezio disappeared.

Clearly Ezio didn't realize that Eugene already had the city memorized inside and out backwards and forwards. Eugene just shook his head and sighed. He shrugged his shoulders to himself. 'Fuck it.'

Eugene walked back into the kingdom. He had his to-do list and he need to get it done fast. First thing he needed was to find the captain again. He needed to talk to him. Unfortunately it wasn't going to be over a beer like they had planned. Eugene didn't think about it before, but he really started appreciating James being here. As much as he hated him before and as much as they had fought and argued before, all of that just seemed to melt away. Whatever rivalry they had between them didn't seem to matter anymore. Though he would never admit it out loud, Eugene was thankful to have James as an ally.

After asking around for a while, Eugene walked into the company building hoping he would find James in the upstairs office. As he walked up the stairs memories started flooding back in. Eugene walked down the hall to the door. He reached the door and as he went to reach for the door handle, he realized that he had been shaking. He slowly opened the door and everything hit him all at once. Memory after memory flooded his mind. He flashed back to that night. He could hear the yelling, and the sobs of King Daniel. Eugene couldn't move. He was standing in the middle of the room, and it started to spin. Daniel was in front of him, but it wasn't Daniel. It was some warped vision that had been conjured from some hellish nightmare that looked like Daniel. Daniel was dead right? Suddenly Eugene felt a sharp pain through his center. His breathing quickened and he started to shake. But he still couldn't move. He heard his name being called in the distance. Rider…Rider! Eugene couldn't see who it was. It sounded so far away. He felt something heavy on his shoulders. His name was being called again except it was louder this time.

"RIDER!" Eugene was suddenly shaken from his hallucination. Captain James stood in front of him, hands on his shoulders. Eugene looked around. He was still standing in the door way. The pain was gone, but his breathing was still slightly out of control. Nausea crept in and Eugene leaned against the door frame and slid down with a groan. James crouched down beside him with a hand on his shoulder to help guide him down. Eugene took in deep breaths and closed his eyes. He leaned his head back resting it on the door frame.

"Easy, Kid, just keep breathin'. It'll pass."

Eugene looked inside. The window was finally fixed and the carpet was replaced. It was a different color. It was a dark blue with gold detail instead of the faded red Prussian carpet it used to be. Eugene finally slowed his breathing back down to normal.

"You ok, Kid?" Eugene's shook his head.

"No." James didn't say anything. "It seems like everything is spinning out of control and I can't stop it. It seems like the more of a grasp I get a hold on things, the more things get out of control and there is nothing I can do about it. How the hell am I supposed to run a kingdom if I can't control my own life right now?" A tear trickled down Eugene cheek unchecked. His mind spun with all of his thought mashing together. Everything was in immense chaos. He still blamed himself for Daniel's death, and now he had to find a way to tell Rapunzel. He hadn't even told the queen, and now he has to figure out how to get Rapunzel out of the kingdom undetected.

"A long time ago there was a bad storm, a hurricane." James started. "We had to evacuate the island and find higher ground. It was such short notice that, unfortunately, we were not able to get everyone to safety and we lost a lot of lives that year. Women, children, I remember paddling through the water that had flooded the city in hopes of finding a survivor. As I continued my search I found someone who… was very dear to me."

"Who?"

"My captain. I was just a lieutenant at the time. My captain, Captain Martian Brunswick, was a fearsome leader, and he was also my mentor. He took me under his wing, taught me everything I know about being a part of the Royal Guards, and what it means to lead and protect. I still remember seeing him pinned down under some rafters of a house that had collapsed. His head was just barely under the water, but under enough that he had drowned."

"I am sorry for your loss, but how in the hell is that supposed to help me?"

"That very same day, I had been thrown into a position of leadership, a position I too felt I was not ready for. That feeling of fight or flight kicked in and I did what I had to do. I led my men, and I helped bring this kingdom back to what it is today, and I did it with the leadership and the guidance that was passed down to me. I know you want to run, and I know you still blame yourself for what happened to Daniel. But I believe in you, and I know there are a lot of people who believe in you. Daniel believed in you, and he would be proud of what you are doing. You can do this, you have got a lot of guts, Kid, and this is only the beginning."

The blind faith that was just put into him only made Eugene feel worse. He didn't want to leave, but what choice did he have? The farther away he and Rapunzel were from Corona the farther away everyone else was from harm.

"I have to leave." Eugene blurted. This took James by surprise. "Look, it's not because I want to, it's because I have to. But it won't be forever, I promise."

"What-why, after what I just said, did that mean nothing?"

"Look, I have to keep everyone as safe as possible and by me leaving the fight will follow me and can stay away from here. It will only be for a little while."

"How long is a little while?" Eugene hesitated.

"I don't know."

"And I take it you want me to lead in your stead?"

"Please, could you? I am not running away from my responsibility, I promise, but I can't stay here. I know it's a lot to ask, but I don't know what else to do." James took a moment before responding.

"I don't understand."

"I know, and it's complicated. I know this is a big leap of faith, but I need you to trust me on this. You just said you trusted me to lead. Please trust that I am making the right decision. I promise you I will come back.

James was not pleased with Eugene's decision, but he didn't have much of a choice. If Eugene knew any better he would just order James to lead in his stead because he had that kind of power. But Eugene wasn't that type of person, and James wasn't going to force his hand into doing so.

"You owe me…BIG time." Eugene smiled.

"I know." James stood up. He held out a hand to help Eugene up from the floor. "Oh, there is one small detail...I um…have to… take Rapunzel with me." James was inches away from Eugene's face with the most serious look Eugene had ever seen.

"King or not, if she does not come back alive and unharmed, I will personally take your life, and make sure that no amount of medicine or resuscitation can bring you back because there will be pieces of you buried all over this island. Do I make myself clear?

"Crystal." James smiled and back up a little.

"Good, I am glad we agree. Now, what do we tell everyone else? I am sure someone is going to find it suspicious that the king and princess have disappeared." They both made their way into the office. James shut the door. Eugene leaned up against the new desk that was put in just a week ago.

"We don't tell anyone. You keep it quiet as long as you can, and when people start asking questions, you tell them the truth. Rapunzel is in safe custody, and that I am out finding whoever did this." James looked at him skeptically. "What, it's the truth, just not the whole truth." James crossed his arms in front of his chest. "I need you to tell no one about this, especially Elizabeth. The less everyone knows the better."

"This seems an awful lot like how Daniel got mixed into all of this; the lying, secrets…sound familiar." Eugene sighed and rolled his eyes.

"I know, but in my defense, I know what I am getting into. Daniel did not. Daniel was trying to get help from people he should have stayed far away from. I am trying to stop these people."

"What will you have me do?"

"Keep everything running as usual. I know everyone here will quickly learn that me and Rapunzel are missing, just tell them what I told you. Try to keep the rumors from spreading as much as possible, and God please, whatever you do, keep that damn council as quiet as possible. They are like the ultimate knitting club the way they gossip and spread rumors and lies around here."

"They haven't said anything."

"Not yet, but give it a week you'll see. I don't trust a single one of them any further than I can throw them. When we get ready to leave, keep the rest of the guards away from our path as best as possible. Remember that secret entrance that leads to the royal chambers?" James nodded "We will be going through there. We will take the tunnel that leads out to the docks and there will be a ship waiting for us. Keep that path clear. If anyone finds us, they will think Rapunzel is being kidnapped again, and they will start firing at us."

"I will do everything I can."

"Thank you."

"Have you told anything to Rapunzel yet?" Eugene sighed.

"No, I keep putting that off, and I am dreading telling her. She will hate me if not forever, then most of her life. I say her life because I probably won't live much longer if she has her way."

"Oh don't be so dramatic. She will be very upset, yes, but I don't think she will hate you." Eugene lowered his head at James and raised his eye-brow. "Ok yeah she will probably hate you for a while, but Rapunzel is a strong girl. She will understand the truth eventually and a lot sooner than you think." Eugene just shrugged his shoulders.

Eugene looked down at the desk he was leaning on. It was darker than Daniel's desk and bigger. There were elaborate carvings around the boarder of the desktop. It was a dark walnut stain with a nice coat of finish to give it a glossy look. He rubbed his hand against the smooth surface. He missed the old clunky desk. It was a part of Daniel. Regardless of what Daniel had done, he couldn't bring himself to be angry at him.

"I had it brought in from Italy." James spoke. "I thought you might like it. The other one was really falling apart." Eugene smiled to himself thinking about how many time he had uttered those words to Daniel. He couldn't bring himself to tell James that he would have preferred to keep Daniel's old desk.

"It's perfect, thanks." Eugene straightened up stretching his arms out slightly and snapped his neck from side to side creating several loud cracks. James heard the sickening sound.

"How are you still walking?" Eugene chuckled a little.

"It's the only way I stay moving." He cracked his shoulders and wrists and slowly twisted his body causing cracks to travel all down his spine, careful not to hurt his midsection. "Oh, that feels better." Eugene received a disgusted look from James. "Well, I gotta go. I still have a few more things to take care of before the end of the day." He started heading for the door.

"Like talk to Rapunzel." Eugene rolled his eyes with dread.

"Don't remind me." James smiled as Eugene opened the door and headed out.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Eugene quickly shut and locked his door. He walked over to a chest that was next to his wardrobe. He took one of the handles on side of the chest and pulled as hard as he could. Despite how it looked, it was extremely heavy. When there was enough room between the chest and his wardrobe, he sat in between leaning up against his wardrobe and pushed the rest of the way with his legs. Finally moving the chest the rest of the way, he positioned himself in front the wall. The wall paper was loose and slightly sunken in. He ripped away the wall paper to reveal a hole, a hole he made a little over two years ago. He reached in and pulled out a large, brown, burlap bag. He walked over to his bed and sat down cross legged with the bag. As he opened it, he took inventory of everything in it. As he pulled the contents out, he inspected them, checking for any defects, scratches, cracks, or tears. He laid everything out and took one more overall look.

It had been a long time since he had worn anything that was lying on his bed, but now was a good time to get ready. His father said he needed to be ready at a moment's notice. He had a feeling that moment would be tonight. His eyes shifted to the glass doors that lead to the balcony, it was dark out. He could see the moon shining through the wispy clouds that passed by rapidly.

Eugene got up and removed the dark red vest he wore. He picked up the garment he had on his bed. It was similar to his father's except his was white with red trim. As he slipped it on, it fit just as snug and comfortable as he remembered. A white hood covered most of his face. It came to a point in the sencter just like Ezio's. The sleeves came down to his wrists and the cuffs of his shirt sleeves underneath barely poked out. He had a triangle shaped lapel that was folded out and was a deep crimson on the inside. A cape draped over his right shoulder and went down a little past his waste, covering his entire right side. The cape was white on the outside and red on the inside and was strapped on with a leather spaulder with a leather strap across his chest diagonally. A red sash wrapped around his waist draping down behind him. On the sash was a silver metal Assassin symbol surrounded by silver olive leaves. Six panels at different lengths came down in front as well as in the back. The longest two were wide and came down to his shins and were white. The next two, which were red, were not as wide and came down to his knees. The last two were even smaller and were also white but came only to his thighs.

Eugene started strapping his weapons on. He had two silver metal bracers to go around his forearms. Within each bracer was a hidden blade. At the tip of one came to an angled and the blade itself was hollow with the hole at the tip of the blade. The other was a long hook blade. He flicked both of his wrists and both blades quickly shot out. With another flick they both shot back in. He took a bandoleer and tied it around himself. They held ten throwing knives; five on each side of his ribs. He wrapped one belt around his hips. At his right side he held a short cutlass sword and on the left a dagger. He took his second belt that held his coin pouch and two other small pouches that held a number of odd little things, such as matches, and poisoned darts, and wrapped it slightly lower than the first. Once he was dressed and ready to go he realized something was missing; something very important. He quickly made his way back to the hole in the wall, lay down on his stomach and reached further back. Once he found what he was looking for, he pulled it out and stood back up. It was his heavy bow and leather quiver of arrows. He inspected both to insure no damage had been done. He pulled back on the string ensuring it hadn't dry-rotted, and the bow wouldn't snap. Once he was satisfied he placed the quiver across his back and placed the bow over his left shoulder.

Now was a good time to go find Rapunzel. She should be in her room by now. It was well after dinner and she usually does some reading in her room before she goes to sleep. As Eugene opened the door he was suddenly stopped by Ezio with his fist up about to knock on his door.

"It's time, we have to go."

'Shit.' He had to do this in hopes Rapunzel will just follow and not ask questions, but he wasn't holding his breath.

Eugene ran to Rapunzel's room. He didn't bother to knock. He burst open the door causing Rapunzel to jump. She was in her night gown already standing at her balcony door.

"Eugene?" She took a look at him. She almost didn't recognize him, until he pulled his hood off. She followed him as he grabbed her long cloak out of her closet. He tossed it to her.

"Put that on."

"Eugene, what are you doing, why are you dressed like that?" He didn't answer. He looked out the window to see if anyone was watching them.

"Look, there isn't time to explain, but we have to go now. Put that on-"

"Gabriel!" Ezio burst into the room. "We have to go now."

Rapunzel was getting more confused. "Eugene I am not going anywhere until you tell me-" But she couldn't finish. Eugene grabbed the cloak out of her hands, threw it on her, and pulled the hood over her head. He grabbed her hand, and rushed out of the room down the hall. He led Rapunzel to the secret entrance. Ezio was about to run the opposite direction before Eugene grabbed him from behind and pulled him back.

"Just follow me."

He moved the table and pulled the frame back to reveal the dark entrance. He nudged Rapunzel down first followed by Ezio. Then Eugene made his way down pulling the frame back shut. The stairway was pitch-black. Rapunzel carefully held her arms out to balance herself on the steps. Ezio carefully dragged his heals down on the side of the steps to know when the next one went down. It was small and cramped, and smelled musty. Eugene pulled out a match from one of his pouches and struck it against the wall to light the way and handed the match to Ezio.

"Eugene what's going on? Where are we going?" Eugene quickly covered her mouth with his hand and with his other placed a finger to his lips.

"Shhh."

He could hear guards in the dungeon. He heard muffled voices in the distance. He placed his ear to the door and listened for the voices to move farther away. Once he felt it was safe to move he pushed on the door. He thanked God that no one come down and locked it. The door still made that horrible screeching noise against the floor. He knew it was only a matter of time before someone came to investigate the terrible sound. He didn't bother to push the door all the way, but just enough for everyone to fit through, even if that meant sucking it in a bit.

"Ok, follow me, and stay close." They made their way down one of the many underground tunnels that wound through the city. It was dark, but Eugene had been down here hundreds of times. He knew his way simply by memorization.

Rapunzel stayed latched to Eugene's back as close as possible without trying to trip either one of them. She had no idea what was happening or where they were going. As they walked further they could feel the ground descending as they made their way under the city limits undetected. They did their best to keep their footsteps as quiet as possible to keep from any noise echoing down the tunnel. At last they felt the ground ascend back up. They were getting closer. Their exit should lead them close to the docks.

Rapunzel hit her head slightly. She stopped to feel what it was. As she reached up her hands felt something cold and rocky, like the walls.

"Eugene, is this tunnel getting smaller?"

"Yeah, we're gonna have to crawl the rest of the way. It gets pretty small up here."

Rapunzel got down on all fours. The small pebbles and uneven edges of the grounds bit into her knees and hands. She did her best to keep up but it was difficult, and the tunnel seemed to get smaller and smaller. Despite all her years in a small cramped tower, she was starting to feel claustrophobic. Her breathing got heavier and her heart started to race. Just when she thought she couldn't take it any longer, Eugene stopped and looked back.

"Don't worry we're at the end." Rapunzel sighed with relief.

There was a small stone door that blocked them from the exit. Eugene felt around for a way to let them out. He felt around but there was no handle, just what felt like a small lock hole in the center. He pawed around for his picks. It took him a little longer than normal to pick the lock due to the lack of light, but eventually he heard a click. The stone barrier started moving up letting in the light from outside. He stuck his head out to make sure everything was clear. Once he was satisfied, Eugene crawled the rest of the way out helping Rapunzel, and his father up.

"Alright, my men are on the ship waiting. Gabriel, are you sure your captain cleared a path for us?

"He should have. I told him to. The docks aren't that far, we should be fine if we stick to the shadows.

"No, no, no I am not moving one more step until someone tells me what is going on." Her voice slowly started to rise.

"Sweetheart, I know you want an explanation-"

"You damn right I do!" Eugene quickly covered her mouth with his hand. The quick movement resulted in shoving her up against the wall. She smacked her head against the brick wall behind her, and she let out a scream.

"Will you be quiet?!" Eugene gritted his teeth as he fought to not let his temper get the better of him.

What they didn't know was one soldier heard the scuffle and saw Rapunzel and the other two that held her captive. Suddenly they heard a bell ringing. They all three looked up. In the distance they heard a soldier.

"THE PRINCESS IS BEING KIDNAPPED!"

"Oh Dio sanno! (Oh, God, they know!)"

Eugene quickly looked around to find a faster escape plan. As he looked he saw a giant cart full of hay. He looked slightly up and noticed it wasn't far from the bell tower. A plan formulated in his head.

"Take Rapunzel, get her on the ship, and don't wait for me." Without waiting for a response Eugene pulled his hood up and took off running while Ezio grabbed Rapunzel's arm and ran the other direction.

If Eugene could distract enough of the guards it might give his father and Rapunzel enough time to get to the ship undetected. Eugene zigzagged around the blocks of the city to get the guards attention. He whistled as loud as he could to get them to follow. He turned down an alleyway with a whole group of guards right behind him, but as he turned another group came towards him. Eugene looked to his right and started climbing up the side of a building. He knew the guards could climb, he taught them, but that was what he was counting on. On to the rooftops he ran as fast as he could as arrows shot past his head leaping from building to building. He wished he hadn't taught them how to shoot so well, otherwise he wouldn't be so worried. Luckily Eugene hadn't had the chance to teach them everything he knew. He made it to the bell tower. He leaped off one of the rooftops and latched on to the side of a windowsill with his hook blade. He climbed, lifting himself up as fast as he could. Rocks and arrows hit the side of the tower and bounced off. One arrow just barely missed Eugene's head as it struck the side with a deadly blow. Eugene took a breath, but continued on. Soldiers were gaining on him, but that was okay, he needed them to be close. Eugene finally made it to the top. He climbed over the side and waited for them. As he saw their head poke up from the side of the bell tower, Eugene calculated his distance over the edge.

"Stop criminal! You have no place to go, we have you surrounded!"

But all they saw was a sinister smile from underneath the white hood that concealed Eugene's features. He turned and took a few running steps as he leaped up onto the ledge, spread his arms, and jumped.

* * *

Rapunzel was having a difficult time keeping up with Ezio. He continued to pull her along and she nearly tripped over herself trying to keep up. With Eugene distracting the guards, it made their escape that much easier. They had to dodge the occasional guard here and there, but for the most part it was easy. They finally made it to the docks and Ezio led Rapunzel up the ramp of the ship. As she reached the top of the ramp she turned to see if Eugene had made it back. When she did, her eyes caught the group of soldiers at the top of the bell tower. She saw the white hooded figure that could only be Eugene, but she did not expect to see him swan dive right off the side. She watched him plunge down below until he was blocked from the rest of the buildings. Rapunzel was in shock. She didn't know what had just happened. She stopped breathing and her eyes widen in complete horror.

"No, no NO! EUGE-" Ezio's hand covered her mouth as he picked her up and brought her onto the ship.

"Stay down and be quiet!" Tears flooded her cheeks as she watched Ezio give commands to release the ship from the docks and set sail. She felt the ship start to move forward. She leaned up against the side next to Ezio.

Ezio stood waiting. His eyes scanned the area for any sign. The ship slowly drifted farther away from the docks.

"Vieni Gabriel. (Come on, Gabriel.)" Suddenly from the right corner of his eye, he saw someone running; it was Eugene. Eugene quickly ran onto the docks. He sprinted as fast as he could, guards hot on his tail.

"Gabriel, jump!" With a grunt Eugene leaped off the side of the docks. His left arm came up and latched himself onto the side of the ship as his hook-blade dug itself into the ledge. Eugene hung there for a moment before climbing up to take a breather and rest for a bit. Two strong hands abruptly grabbed him and hauled him over. He landed on his back with a thud. Rapunzel quickly made her way over to Eugene as he let out a slight groan.

"Gabriel, are you alright?"

"Yeah, just don't move me, ow."

"Eugene what's wrong, are you hurt?"

"I just jumped off of a bell tower into a pile of hay. I haven't done that in a while. So yeah, I'm a little sore."

Rapunzel had a burst of anger hit her. She started beating on Eugene's chest violently with her fists repeatedly.

"Ow, what the, OW! Rapunzel, stop!" Ezio grabbed her arms and held her as he calmed her down.

"Princess, please, enough." Defeated, Rapunzel ran off in a fit of rage towards the bow of the ship. "Are you alright?"

"I'll survive." His response was deflated as he still lay on his back.

"You weren't hit were you?"

"No, almost, but no. Just really sore." Ezio held out a hand over his son. Eugene slowly lifted his arms and was pulled to his feet.

"Penso che ora sarebbe un buon momento per parlare di Rapunzel (I think now would be a good time to talk to Rapunzel)."

"Ya think?"

Eugene and Ezio made their way to Rapunzel. She was towards the bow. She was crying, and shivering as she looked toward the sea ahead not knowing where she was headed. She felt their presence but she did not turn around.

"What do you want?" She did her best to sound angry, but she came of sounding stuffed up as she blew her runny nose into a handkerchief. Eugene did his best to hide the smile. No matter what Rapunzel did, or how angry she was at him, Eugene still found her as adorable.

"Look, Rapunzel, I am sorry we had to do this to you, but-" Rapunzel whipped around.

"You are damn right you are sorry! You kidnapped me and forced me onto this ship, with a bunch of people I don't know, and worst of all, you left me alone letting me watch you jump to you death-"

"It wasn't to my death." He spoke quietly

"-And for what? What the hell could be so important to rush me out of my own kingdom in the middle of the damn night?" Eugene stayed calm.

"Well, if you would stop cursing at me, I might be able to tell you."

"NO! You don't get to speak. I do not want to listen to anything you have to say!"

"Well which is it? Do you want me to explain or not?"

"Gabriel, let me try."

"AND WHO THE HELL IS THIS?! Why is he calling you Gabriel?!"

"Princess, we need you to calm down."

"No not until someone tells me what the hell is going on!" Eugene was getting frustrated.

"Holy shit that's what I am trying to do!" Ezio gave Eugene a stern look.

"Princess, please" Rapunzel felt threatened. Like a vicious animal being cornered.

"No get away from me don't touch me!" Eugene had had enough. With swiftness he reached out with his left hand and slapped Rapunzel. It stunned her, Ezio was even shocked.

"I'm sorry, but you have got to get a hold of yourself. This is ridiculous. Trust me, I didn't want to slap you, but I need you to listen and calm down." He spoke slow. He saw the anger be replaced by hurt and embarrassment on Rapunzel's face as she light rubbed her cheek. It didn't hurt that bad, but it did sting a little. "I wanted to tell you this for a while but I just didn't know how. There really is no simple way to say this so I am just going to lay it out for you." Eugene took a deep breath before he started. "My full name is Gabriel Eugene Auditore. This is my father Ezio Auditore." He waited for just that much to sink in.

"Your…father? But I thought-"

"I know. I…lied, but I had to."

"Really? You had to lie to me. What excuse could ever justify you lying to me?"

"My life." She stared at Eugene. "And yours."

"I don't understand."

"There are a lot of things you don't know about me-"

"Clearly!"

"THINGS…that had you or anyone else had known outside of my tight circle, would have been killed to get to me." Rapunzel looked away with tears in her eyes. "I am a part of a brotherhood called the Assassins."

"The Assassins? You kill people now?"

"Rapunzel please, would you just stop and listen for five minutes without interruption? I understand you are pissed off I would be too, but I am trying to explain to you why I kept this from you. I have some very difficult…news to tell you and you interrupting me is not making it any easier. So please, just don't say anything until I have told you everything. Ok?"

Rapunzel didn't respond. She just continued to look back out to the dark horizon. He told her everything, the Templars, he explained the artifacts, and how she was to be the third Piece of Eden that the Templars are looking for. Then he came to the difficult part.

"The reason I am telling you all of this is because this all has to do with your father."

"My father?"

"Rapunzel…your father set up your kidnapping."

"What?!"

"I know it's hard to believe, but you have to believe me." He hated telling her what was next. "Your father…was also the one that…tried to kill me."

"And I was the one that killed him." Ezio finished for Eugene, knowing how difficult it was for Eugene to tell the woman he loved that her father was a traitor.

"No! How could you! You're lying! Please Eugene tell me it's not true!" Tears flowed free, and sobs caused her to hiccup.

"I'm so sorry sweetheart I wish I could but-" WHAP. Eugene was caught by surprise when he received a hard slap to the face. Then another, and another, and when Rapunzel pulled her hand back to give him one last hard slap, she retreated to the cabin down below leaving Eugene a little stunned. "That…played out a little differently…than what I thought."

"Mmm no, no that went about right." Eugene glared at his father. "Don't worry, Son, she will come around. Like you said, it's a lot of hard information to take. Just give her some time. You will see."

"I hope so." Eugene started looking around the ship. He noticed things looked a bit familiar. Then he looked up. "Is…is that the Coronian flag?" Ezio looked up.

"Sì, it is."

"What the…you made me steal my own ship? I thought you said your men had a ship?"

"They did. This one. You didn't really think that we would be able to bring an unknown ship into your harbor without someone noticing and having a problem with it did you?"

"Well…it would have been nice to know."

"And you do know…now." Ezio smiled and left Eugene as he went down below.

Eugene just stood there and shook his head in disbelief. His father could be a real piece of work sometimes he thought.

He looked out in the direction they were headed. He knew where they were going, but it had been a long time since he had been there. He wasn't sure if he would remember it, or if his own family would remember him. It had been quite a while, and he almost dreaded going home. 'Home', a word he had not thought of in many, many years.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

"Where is she, WHERE IS SHE?! RAPUNZEL? RAPUNZEL WHERE ARE YOU?!"

The queen franticly searched through every door down every corridor of the palace in search of her missing daughter. She couldn't believe that her daughter had been kidnapped again, and now even her son-in-law had been missing as well. Captain James sprinted down the hall to reach the desperate queen. He had hoped that this would have gone down a little quieter, but it only takes one idiot to mess everything up, and the whole plan goes up in smoke. He specifically remembered telling his men to keep to the palace, but one soldier could not listen. Now the entire kingdom was in an uproar. The princess was missing, their newly crowned king was missing, and what was worse; people kept spreading lies about what they think happened. It had even gone as far as the princess was dead and the king was on the run. He even heard that a white demon had flown from the top of the bell tower back down to hell where it came from. What was wrong with these people? James concluded that it had to be something in their water supply. But then again, with some of the things he had heard over the past few weeks, that didn't seem so crazy.

Captain James could see the queen running back a forth from door to door calling out for Rapunzel. He called to her.

"Elizabeth, my queen."

"Where is she?! James she's gone, where is she?!"

"Your highness please calm down she's fine."

"Where is she? I want to see her. James, I need to see her." She was sobbing, eyes puffy and her nose was red.

"You can't right now but-"

"Don't tell me that. I have to see my daughter!"

"Elizabeth! Sweetheart." He finally caught her attention. She looked into James's eyes. They were clouded with distraught and worry for her. He held her tight. Elizabeth collapsed into his arms and sobbed. He held her tight and stroked her head gently as he tried to soother her.

"Everything is going to be alright, they are both fine, they are both alive. I promise you. Eugene is with Rapunzel, and if there is anybody who I would put Rapunzel's life with, it would be Eugene. I promise you he will protect her." Elizabeth stopped sobbing for a moment as she looked up at James.

"Where are they, why did they go?"

"I don't know where they are, but if we gather everyone in the town square I will make an announcement." Elizabeth held onto James as she continued to cry.

"Oh, James, I can't lose her again, I just can't."

"I know, I know. You won't. You have my word." He only hoped he was able to keep it.

* * *

James stared down at the crowd that gathered in the town square. He had never been in this position before. Well, he had, but not like this. He was used to a group of brute men who knew that whatever he said went. He was able to be blunt and straight forward. But with civilians, it was different. They wouldn't receive the message the same way. He had to be more delicate about it. He stared down as hundreds of sets of eyes stared right on back. He swallowed hard.

"There have been some rumors as to what happened last night. I am here…to set those rumors…to rest. As everyone may know…King Eugene, and Princess Rapunzel are absent, however, there is a reason for this. It had come to our attention…that there might be…an assassination planned against the princess." A low rumble came from the crowed as they shifted. "But I assure you…we will not let anything happen to our beloved princess. That is why…we had to get her out of here. We needed to keep it quiet for fear of her enemies finding out. Unfortunately, it did not quite go as planned. I promise… she is in good hands, and she will be protected. King Eugene is out following some leads on the late King Daniel's murder. I cannot disclose either one of their locations, however, I can tell you…they are both safe. Please do not spread rumors of either one of their statues…for that will only cause panic…and it is misguided. As soon as we have any more information…we will address you. Please, continue your lives as normal as you can. The king left me in charge by the queen side until his return. Everything will continue as if nothing has changed. Thank you."

James walked back into the palace along with Queen Elizabeth. She was clearly still very distraught as she twisted her hands anxiously. James grabbed her hands and brought her into an embrace. Elizabeth clung tight to James.

"Oh James, I'm so worried for them."

"I know, but I told you, Eugene will watch over her."

"But who will watch over Eugene?" James smiled.

"Oh, I think he has that covered. I wouldn't worry over him too much. He is a lot more capable than any of us give him credit for." James kissed Elizabeth gently on the forehead. "Why don't we get some breakfast." They walked hand in hand to the dining hall.

* * *

Low moans could be heard throughout the dark dungeon. Few torches were lit, just enough to shed light on one man chained with his arms above his head. His posture was near lifeless. Blood dripped down his bare chest and back from the numerous gashes. One eye was swollen shut, and his lips cracked with dried blood.

Sir Gregor was barely recognizable as he hung chained to a rafter above him. Ivan slowly walked up to a nearby table that had numerous amounts of large torcher instruments, nearly all of them were covered in blood. Next to the table was a small fire pit that held a number of red hot iron rods sitting in glowing coals. He laid a small whip that was coiled up onto the table with the rest of his tools.

"I had high hopes for you Gregor." He picked up an evil looking knife off the table and one of the iron rods. "But unfortunately, you failed me." He walked slowly toward Gregor. "And do you know what happens when my people fail me?" Gregor trembled with fear.

"Please…please have mercy." His pleads were low and pathetic.

"Oh, this is mercy Gregor. You haven't seen what I do when I catch an Assassin." An evil smile split his face as a low rumble of a cackle escaped. Ivan slowly sliced into the side of Gregor ribs. Blood started to trickle down. "Unfortunately for you, I cannot allow you to continue working for me. Leaves to much room for error if you know what I mean." He took the red hot iron and pressed it to the newly inflicted wound.

"GAHHHHHHH!" Gregor's cry echoed throughout the dungeon.

"You can scream all you want. No one is going to hear you. We are underground. It is practically sound proof." Ivan slowly walked away back to the table placing the rod and the knife back down. "Did you know that the two Assassins escaped the city with the princess? Oh, wait, I'm sorry, you have been…a little preoccupied. Now I have to track them down, again. You have no idea how many years of careful and strategic planning is now all wasted because of you. Had you have listened to me in the first place and killed of the boy sooner, we would have been able to frame the king like we had planned and we would have had the third Piece of Eden, and you…well you wouldn't be in this…sticky situation now would you?"

Ivan picked up a small lead hammer and a block of wood. "Have you ever heard of the term hobbling, Sir Gregor?" Gregor didn't answer, but continued to tremble uncontrollably. "It is when a victim is tied down to a bed, with a block of wood placed in between their ankles. Then their ankles are proceeded to be smashed…with this." He held up the hammer a little too eagerly. "As you can see," he placed the block between Gregor's feet as Gregor's trembles turned into convulsions of fear, "I don't have the luxury of a bed, so this will have to do and we shall see how it works." He raised the hammer getting ready to swing.

"No, no, NO! I KNOW WHERE THEY ARE!" Ivan stopped his swing just before Gregor's left ankle. "I…I know where they would hide out."

"Oh, and how would you know?"

"It's simple…really. They would want to take the princess some place safe, some place that they know, where they have the upper hand."

"And just where would that be?" Gregor smiled weakly. He now had a bargaining chip.

"If I told you, you would kill me. Let me go, give me medicine, and I will lead you to them."

"Or…I could get it out of you by way of more pain."

"You won't risk that. I could die before you are able to get it out of me. And with each passing moment, they are getting farther and farther away. But if you let me go now, and aid me, we can get to them…that much faster." Ivan thought about it. Gregor didn't seem so useless after all.

"Fine, I will…see to it that you are in good health, but you give me the exact location and I mean down to the very shelter that they are in because if you fail me, the amount of pain you are in now will not even come close to the pain you will feel if you do. Do I make myself clear?" Gregor breathed heavily as Ivan came closer and closer until his nose was only inches away.

"Yes."

"Good. GUARDS!" Two Templar guards came from the other side of the dungeon dressed in armor with a red cross embroidered on their chest. "Bring Sir Gregor up stairs and get him medical attention. We have much to do."

* * *

A Coronian soldier walked back and forth keeping a watchful eye on all corners. The level of security had been raised due to the circumstances. As he walked around his assigned post, a hand wrapped around his mouth from behind, and he was pulled in to a dark alleyway. A short sword was held to his chest as he was shoved up against the side of a building. His helmet got knocked off falling to the ground with a metallic clatter.

"You failed soldier." The solider was shaken, and the breath was knocked slightly out of him.

"Please, I'm sorry, I alerted everyone. I even rang the bell like you said. I couldn't reach them fast enough, and the king, he…he was just too fast. Please, I tried." Sir Grantham pressed the swords tip harder into the soldier's chest.

"That is not good enough, and now you have to pay." The sword penetrated though the young man's chest. His eyes widened as the pain flashed across them. He sucked in his breath as he continued to plead.

"Plllease…my daughter…sh…she's…sick. Mm-my fam-ily." He looked at Grantham with sorrow.

"You will meet your family in the afterlife."

"Naa-" Before the soldier could scream, Grantham pierced the blade through his throat. The soldier gurgled as blood came pouring out of his mouth. He finally succumbed to death's grip and slid to the ground as he let out his last breath.

* * *

Eugene lay on his side as he was rocked to sleep by the waves pushing the ship. It wasn't very often he got a decent restful sleep, and this time was not any different. He was suddenly awoken by yelling up on deck. He shot up but instantly regretting the sudden movement. He had forgotten he was below deck on a ship and ceilings were much lower where his bunk was. He fell back down groaning as he smacked his head on the board above him.

"Ahhhh, son of a…" Rubbing his head, he swung his legs over the side of his bunk and ran up the steps that lead to the deck. He shielded his eyes from the bright morning sunlight. Eugene was still groggy and couldn't quite see where the commotion was coming from but he could hear it. He turned around and to the bow of the ship he could see two men wrestling against another small man. He ran over to get a better look.

"I WILL KILL YOU! IN THE NAME OF KING EUGENE FITZHERBERT I WILL KILL YOU ALL TO SAVE THE PRINCESS!"

A crowd began to gather as two Assassins grappled with the intruder. They started to push him over the ledge of the ship. Eugene recognized the voice. He placed his thumb and middle finger on the edge of his lips whistling as loud as he could, grabbing the attention of everyone on board.

"What the hell is going on?"

One of the Assassin's that held their hidden blade to the intruders throat spoke.

"This boy here is an intruder; he means to kidnap the princess."

"IT'S NOT KIDNAP IF I AM TAKING HER FROM THOSE WHO ALREADY KIDNAPPED HER!"

"Lucas?"

Lucas was as shocked to see Eugene. "Sir?"

"What the hell are you doing here?"

Ezio walked up next to Eugene. "What's going on?"

Rapunzel wobbled up on the other side of Eugene, still rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. "What's with all the yelling?"

Eugene felt a headache coming on. His hands slowly came up to his temples massaging them trying to dull the pain. "Oh, Jesus Christ." This was slowly turning into a disaster.

"Ok, guys let him go, he's fine, a little mixed up, but he's fine." Eugene ordered.

The two Assassin's slowly back away from Lucas keeping their weapons in the ready position not letting their guard down. Lucas straightened up fixing his shirt that had bunched up around his waist huffing at his two assailants.

"Everybody, its fine, just go back to…whatever it was you were doing." The crowed slowly dissipated. Eugene, Ezio, and Rapunzel walked up to Lucas who was still on edge and looking very confused. "Lucas, what are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same question. What are you doing with Princess Rapunzel here? Eugene got heated.

"I have a damn good reason. Now tell me why I shouldn't throw you overboard myself. Does your mother even know you're here?" Lucas didn't answer right away. He looked at Ezio nervously who stared him down threateningly. Eugene sighed, and looked to his left. "You two go, let me talk to him alone." They waited until Rapunzel and Ezio were out of ear shot. Lucas spoke quietly.

"I heard what happened, to the king…and to you. I was going to come and see you, see if you were alright. I wanted to help. It took me a while to get here, and by the time I was half way here, I heard you had been crowned king. Last night I got to Corona, I saw people taking the princess. So I hopped on the ship and hid out until I could figure something out, except I was found too soon." Eugene raised an eye brow and lightly laughed.

"And just what was your plan when you hopped aboard a ship full of Assassins?"

"I don't know, rescue the princess."

"And then what?"

"I don't know, I told you I was found before I could finish planning."

"It doesn't sound like you even started a plan. Look you are either incredibly stupid or incredible brave because you are not only horribly out-numbered, but you are out-matched as well. These guys would have chopped you up into fish food had I not been here. What the hell were you thinking?" Lucas looked down at the floor. "Does your mother know you're here?" Lucas shook his head. "Your sister?" Same answer. "Of course they don't."

"Look I'm sorry." Eugene shook his head. What was he supposed to do with a teenager? He couldn't let him get involved with this, he wouldn't last five minutes.

"Alright, I will keep you here for now but the minute we make it to our destination, I am putting your ass on the first boat back to England, got it?"

"Wha-, wait, since I am already here, can't I help."

"Haha no." Eugene turned around and started walking briskly. Lucas quickly followed behind ducking the low hanging lines.

"Please, I could be helpful."

"No."

"Teach me how to fight. I will do anything."

"No!" Lucas grabbed Eugene's arm as he continued to plead with him.

"Come on! I want to help!" Eugene stopped abruptly and faced Lucas.

"Do not make me tie your ass up and hang you upside down from the mainmast. You're going home, end of discussion."

* * *

Rapunzel lay on her side on her bed in the Captain's Quarters. It was a lush bed, feather top blanket with feather pillows to match. The room was spacious and it had the most beautiful stained glass window of Corona's sun symbol with a royal purple background that colored the room when the sun hit it just right. Rapunzel lay still, picking at the little feathers that poked out of her comforter. All the thoughts that raced, the questions she had, the doubts, her insecurities, all spun around in circles. A tear fell and wetted her arm that was tucked under her head. She had never been so angry with Eugene. The hurt she felt the night she thought he had left her with the Stabbington brothers did not even come close to the rage and grief she had been feeling now. Was she ever able to trust Eugene again? Would she want to trust him? And if she did trust him, would he just betray her again. Gothel's words started creeping back into her head. _'Gullible, naïve, ditsy, vague. Why would he like you come on now really, you think that he's impressed? You are too naïve to be here.' _And what of her father? Her father was now gone. She blamed Eugene for that. But had she not brought Eugene back with her, none of this would have happened. So she ultimately brought the blame right back on herself. She lightly sobbed into her pillow clutching it as she curled herself up.

"You were right mother, you were right about everything."

Footsteps lightly tapped down the steps. Rapunzel turned away from the door not wanting to see or talk to anyone. She dried the tears from her eyes as she controlled her sniffling. She shut her eyes tight in hopes that whoever it was would think she was asleep and would leave her alone. She heard the door squeak open.

"Rapunzel?" Her heart sunk as she heard Eugene's voice. It was low, and there was sadness in his voice. He knew he had hurt her, but she wasn't ready to forgive him just yet, or if ever for that matter. "Sweetheart, do you wanna talk?" Rapunzel angrily pulled the blanket around herself covering her head. "Ok, I'll take that as a no. Fine, you don't have to talk I just need you to listen. Look, I'm sorry I lied to you about me, about everything. And I am sorry I lied to you about what happened with your father. But please you have to believe me. I had to keep it quiet until the right time. If word had gotten out of what really happened…I don't know what might have happened to the kingdom, me…and most importantly you. Do you have any idea how many people want me and my family dead because I am an Assassin?" There was no answer. "Well…it's a lot. Please, I did it to protect you and-" Rapunzel shot up from the bed, face red, looking ready to pounce on Eugene.

"Protect me! You wanted to protect me?! I am so SICK of people trying to "protect me" because they don't think I can handle it. I have been "protected" my entire life, and I just want people to stop. You lied to me, you used me, and you tricked me. I may have been sheltered my entire life, but I am NOT an idiot. I am NOT a child!" Tears flooded her cheeks. "Do you have any idea what it is like to believe your entire life that you are to be afraid of everything, that everyone is out to get you, to think that you are weak, and you can't make it on your own, all because your mother is trying to "protect you"? Then you wake up and find out that all of it, all eighteen years of it, was a complete lie and that you were just being used for someone else's selfish wants. You are just like Gothel. I want you to leave. I don't want to see you again."

Eugene couldn't believe what he was hearing. His heart shattered into a thousand pieces. It felt like someone had ripped his heart from his chest and shattered it right in front of him. What was she even saying, did she have an idea or was she just so upset that she was just yelling just to yell? Just like Gothel? No, she couldn't have said that. Never once did Eugene think she couldn't handle the truth, hard to take yes, but he never thought Rapunzel couldn't handle it. If anything, Eugene thought he couldn't handle telling her. A knot formed in his throat that he tried hard to swallow down. His chest felt heavy, and he felt hot tears start to well up.

"Rapunzel…I-"

"Get. Out."

Defeated, Eugene slowly turned to the door and clicked the door shut. Rapunzel could hear his footsteps slowly move up the stairs. She closed her eyes and sunk back down onto the bed as tears continued to stream down. Shortly after, she heard a loud thunk and the door flew open banging against the wall. She jumped up as Eugene stormed back in in a complete rage. He was inches away from her face.

"Fuck you. Who the fuck do you think you are? You think you are the only one with a shitty childhood, huh?! Because you don't know the half of it yet! I'm sorry mommy emotionally fucked you up, but trust me, _Princess_, you have no idea how bad it really gets. You sit there and try to guilt trip me with that bull shit "woe is me" sob story, FUCK YOU! Get the fuck over yourself! I am just like Gothel? How DARE you…I FUCKING DIED FOR YOU!" Eugene stormed off slamming the door shut behind him.

Rapunzel had never seen Eugene so angry like that before. It frightened her down to her very core. Rapunzel slowly crumpled down to the floor and sobs continued to shake her. Her head hurt, her heart hurt, it was hard to breathe, and all she wanted was to go home.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

A group of guards blocked the entrance to the alleyway as they pulled security around it keeping the locals from looking at the horrific scene that was before them. Two guards shifted out of the way when Captain James came barreling through. He had gotten word that one of his men had been brutally murdered. James hadn't known him all that well, but he did know who he was. Staff Sergeant Charles Steiner. James knew all of his men by name. He made sure as a leader that he knew who they were. He also knew that the fallen soldier had a wife, named Ella and a thirteen year old daughter, named Sarah, who had been extremely sick the last few years and she wasn't getting any better.

This was going to devastate his wife. Now she was never going to get the money for her daughter's treatment. James had met the soldier's wife and daughter. Ella was a kind and quiet soul, and she could bake the best pies he had ever tasted. Sarah, despite how sick she was, was full of life. She was a beautiful blonde with big blue eyes. She wanted to become an actress someday. Sarah was always putting on one-manned shows for the family.

James bent down eye level with the deceased Charles Steiner. His eyes were still slightly open. He wore a silver chain around his neck with his wedding ring on it and a small angel charm given to him by his daughter.

_*"I like wearing them around my neck, so they can stay closer to my heart."_

James heard the words echo in his head when he confronted the young man years ago about it not being proper uniform code to wear such things around his neck. When Charles told him his reasons, James couldn't help but bend the rule for him just this once. Ever since then they had never left the man's neck. James fought hard to keep his emotions in check as he delicately removed the chain from the body. Charles was a good man, with a big heart, and his guard would be less without him. With one last goodbye James gently pushed down on his eye lids. He got up and slipped the chain in his pocket for safe keeping. He walked up to one of his guards pulling security.

"Take care of him properly. You two," James pointed to two other soldiers next to each other, "Come with me." James mounted Maximus and the two soldiers quickly followed suit on their own horses. With a light tap of their heels they all three rode into a gallop with the crowds of the town's people quickly clearing the way.

James had been to Charles' house once or twice to pick up a pie from his wife. It had been a while but he had a pretty good idea of where his home was. It wasn't far from the island, but it was more inland. When he rode up to the property nothing could have prepared him for the sight he had witnessed.

Smoke rose from the pile of burning embers that was once a home. James felt like he had been struck with an arrow through the heart. He urged Maximus faster into a full sprint leaving the other two behind to catch up. His heart raced and his eyes blurred from them watering as the wind blew into his face. He didn't bother to stop Maximus all the way before he jumped down. His eyes scanned the area as he ran around the perimeter of the house searching for any sign of life.

"ELLA! SARAH!"

The other two finally caught up and dismount their horses.

"Dear God! What happened here?" One of them said.

"Sir, over here!"

James ran to were the other soldier was standing. He had found them. He had found them lying on the ground together in a heap surrounded by the fallen remains of their home; their bodies completely burned leaving nothing but charred flesh and bone to show their existence. James sunk to his knees in complete despair. His helmet fell of his head as his arms braced him up. Tears damped the burnt ground. The other two removed their helmets as a sign of respect. They stood in silence for a while, each with their own thoughts of grief. One placed a hand on James shoulder and gave a gentle squeeze. A shaky hand clasped on top the soldier's hand as James rocked on his knees.

No one deserved this James thought. He wasn't sure what Charles had done to be brutally murdered the way he was, and his family certainly didn't deserve the ruthlessness that was given to them. What had they done to be murdered? Was it out of cold blood or did someone have it out for him? James couldn't wrap his head around it. Charles was one of the kindest men he had ever met. His wife and daughter were most certainly innocent. What could they have to receive such horrible fates?

James took in a shaky breath and collected himself. He got up and faced the two soldiers. He said in a low sad voice, "We have to take care of them."

A thump sound came from the planks of wood hitting the make-shift cross that marked the two freshly dug graves. It wasn't well dug, but it was all they could do with the improvised shovels they made from whatever scrapes they could find in the rubble. Unfortunately, there would be no names at the moment. James only hoped that they were deep enough so the wild animals wouldn't get to them until they were able to give them a proper burial; one where all three could be put to rest together.

The three rode off back toward the kingdom. No said anything. The only sounds that were made were the sounds of the wild and the uneven beats of the horse hooves beating the ground.

When they got back, they lead their horses back into the stables.

"You two gather the rest of the troops I want every soldier present and accounted for. I can't risk anymore of our men to end up like this."

"Yes sir."

James made his way back to the palace. He was sure Elizabeth had already heard the news and wanted to see if she was alright.

Though it was only a few months since King Daniels death, he could no longer hide his feeling for the queen. He had always been in love with her, and he had the slightest inkling she was too, but she was married to Daniel, and he would not dare cross that boundary. But with Daniel now gone and Elizabeth alone, he felt he needed to fill some sort of void. Still, he felt guilty for it. He felt like he was taking advantage of a bad situation for his favor. He told himself that he would just have to take it slow, but that was hard after holding back for so many years. James felt like he was going to erupt if he didn't tell Elizabeth how he felt.

He could remember when it had all started. It was shortly after he had gotten into the huge brawl at the local tavern that nearly cost him his career. Elizabeth had been there to pick up the pieces. Daniel had been so distant with his own work and depression, that both Elizabeth and James happen to find themselves in each other's company talking, and helping one another deal with the loss of Rapunzel. Ever since then he had the overwhelming feeling that he need her.

He reached the main corridor of the palace when one of the maids came running up to him.

"Captain, Captain! You have to come quick, in the king's study."

"Is everything ok?"

"No time, come quick!"

They both ran up the stairs to the study. When he pushed the door open he saw the queen sitting across from one of his soldiers, clasping his hands in hers. The both looked up to see James standing in the doorway. Elizabeth wore a worried look, and the young soldier had red puffy eyes obviously from crying.

"What's going on?" The young soldier looked back at the queen.

"Its ok honey, just tell him what you told me."

"Tell me what?"

The young man's voice quivered slightly as he spoke. "SSG. Steiner sir. He…he told me about a man…"

"What man?"

"He told me that a man had come to him…offering him money for his daughter's medicine if…if he spied on King Eugene and Princess Rapunzel. And to let…let him know if they try to leave. The man said that Steiner would get his money if he would…intercept their escape…and kill the king…for kidnapping the princess."

"How do you know this?"

"Steiner told me about it the same day the king and princess made their escape. He told me not to tell anyone, but he wasn't sure if he should do it…but he…he needed the money…for his daughter. I'm so sorry Captain…I should have told someone…I'm so sorry." He lowered his head into his hands, and Elizabeth tried to console him.

"Shhh, it's not your fault."

James' blood began to boil, and fists were clenched. He stormed out of the room. He knew exactly whose fault this was. Elizabeth quickly followed him out of the room calling after him.

"James. James! STOP!" James halted but didn't turn to face her. "What is going on here? Why won't you talk to me? I know you know more than you are letting on." James wasn't sure how to answer.

"I have to go your highness." He continued walking forward.

"How dare you walk away from me?" She stomped toward him. "I am your queen and you _will_ not leave until _I_ give you permission!" James stopped once again. She came in front of him and looked into his eyes. They were tiresome, and they no longer had the vigor they once had in them. "James please, I feel like I am the only one here that doesn't know what is going on. My daughter and son are gone, my husband is dead, and you, of all people, I thought would not keep secrets from me. And now I feel like I am loosing you too." She brought her hand up to his cheek. He instantly moved his head towards it as he gently grabbed her wrist. He felt his heart skip a beat the moment he felt her touch. "James, please, I have no one else."

It was breaking his heart, and he was breaking hers. "Alright, but I have to go. I promise if you let me go I will tell you everything tonight. I promise."

"Where are you going?" He paused for a moment.

"I have to make a call." His statement perplexed her, but she didn't have time to question it before he took off again.

James took back alleyways as he carefully looked over his shoulder. There was a rolled up note in his hand.

"_I can't tell you were I am going, but if there is ever a time when you need to contact me there is a way to do so. You just have to keep to the back roads and make sure no one follows you. Here is a map to show you. There is a pigeon coop on top of one of the roofs. Tie a note to the leg of one of the pigeons and let it go. It will fly to another nest were I am going to be. I know it sounds odd but that's how we Assassin's communicate with each other when we are miles apart. You will have to do some climbing, so be careful not to break a hip old man."_

"_How will I know if it will get to you?"_

"_Don't worry it will. Assassins have been using the way of communicating for many, many years and it hasn't failed us yet." _

James knew exactly where he needed to go when he looked at the map that Eugene had made for him. The only problem was getting up there. He hadn't been a part of Eugene's training when he taught the men how to scale. He thought it was preposterous at the time, now, not so much. He looked around. He saw some crates and a few large wooden barrels. He placed the barrels next to each other to have a steady base and placed the crates on top of each other so he could climb to the top. He made it to one of the rafters that was sticking out of the building side. He grabbed ahold of it and pulled himself up. It had been so many years since he had done a pull up that he struggled getting up, but with enough determination he managed to pull himself up. How was Eugene able to do this on a regular basis without feeling like his arms were going to fall off?

James got up to the roof and looked around. The coop was tucked away in a corner between two adjacent buildings. He walked over to the coop. When he opened the little door to the coop and reached his hand in to grab one it startled the birds causing them to flutter around and squawk. Quickly, he removed his hand and shut the door before any of them could escape. He waited until they calmed down before he reached in again. This time he moved his hand in a little slower. It took a few tries before he got a hold of one but eventually he succeeded. James wrapped the note round one of the legs as instructed and let the bird go. He watched it take off to its new destination until he could no longer see it.

James slowly made his way back down off the roof and started his way back to the palace. It was an uneventful stroll back. He had put so much energy in getting to his destination that he let off the steam and anger he had felt before. He was still upset, but he felt drained now. Instead of concentrating on the events from earlier, he thought about how he was going to explain everything to Elizabeth. He didn't even quite understand it himself. He remembered everything that Eugene and Ezio told him, but he still had questions. Actually he didn't even know what questions to ask. All he knew was that Eugene was not who he said he was, and Daniel set up Rapunzel's kidnapping. That was really all he could say, that was honestly all he knew. How was he ever going to explain this to the queen, his love?

James had been completely engulfed in his thoughts that he didn't realize he had made it back to the palace so soon. He walked up the steps to the front doors. He walked inside and walked upstairs back to the office where he had left her. As he walked in he saw Elizabeth sitting at the table inside the study with tea set up for two, no three. He looked across from Elizabeth and saw another woman sitting with her. Elizabeth looked up and smiled.

"James, I am so glad you came back. This is Carissa Romanov. She said she might have some information about Eugene and his whereabouts with Rapunzel. I told her that you had some information too and I thought we could all talk. Won't you come and sit down?"

Carissa stood up and held out her hand to greet him and smiled. James looked down at her hand and saw a ring on her right ring finger. It had a red Templar symbol on it.

"Hello, it is so nice to meet you Captain James. I have heard so much about you."

* * *

CRACK. A loud crackle of thunder echoed in everyone's ears as they were being tossed about on the ship. Another flash of lightning lit up the night sky followed by another boom of thunder. The storm came quick and without warning. The crew of Assassins all did their best to keep the ship from being thrown off course. Waves struck the ship. If the hard heavy rain didn't get you wet, the waves being tossed on board certainly would. Eugene stood at the ships helm trying to hold the wheel steady and keep his own balance at the same time. His father stood by his side to help give orders and guide him through the storm.

"Gabriel! We are never going to make it through the storm like this! We need to lower the sails half mast, turn her with the wind, and ride it out!

"We do that and we will be thrown off course!

"We are already being thrown off, at least this way we have a chance!

This was going to throw them off schedule. It could be days, maybe even a week before they reach their destination and that was if everything went smoothly. But he didn't have a choice. He couldn't fight the wind any longer and with the sails up all the way it could damage one of the masts and that could set them back even farther.

"Alright! Set them half-mast!" Ezio gave out the command to the crew. Just then another large wave hit the ship rocking it hard. The wave sent everyone flying to the other side of the ship including Eugene adding another couple inches of water on board. He got back up just as quickly as he went down.

"WOAHO! GET SOME BOYS!" Eugene yelled to his crew as they got up from being tossed around like rag dolls. The crew responded with shouting, whistles and cheers. If there was one thing Eugene knew how to do without fail, no matter the circumstances, it was motiving people. He just had a certain charisma about him that made people want to follow him.

Down below in the Captain's Quarters, Rapunzel and Lucas heard the commotion from the cheering above. They both looked up and then to each other wondering what could be worth cheering about. They both had been ordered to stay below when the storm hit. Water had started to leak inside the cabin so they both sought out refuge on Rapunzel's the bed. Neither of them had really spoken; Rapunzel, because she hadn't been in the mood to talk since her near shanghai, and Lucas because, well, this was as close to getting a girl into bed he had ever been. He wasn't sure what to do next. So he said the first thing that came to mind.

"Sounds like fun up there." Rapunzel only responded with a tentative smile and a slight nod before she looked back down at her hands.

Rapunzel was extremely bored. She had nothing to do. She had been sleeping most of the time but that clearly wasn't happening at the moment. She didn't even have time to grab a sketch book or even a novel to keep her busy. She was still in her night clothes which made her feel even more uncomfortable around Lucas. She grabbed her cloak and wrapped it around herself. At least that way she was more concealed. Their silence continued only hearing the boards of the ship creek as the waves struck against it, and the occasional cracks of thunder.

"Alright! Everything is ready, let her go Gabriel!"

Eugene let go of the wheel. It spun turning with the wind bringing the ship around. Their ride suddenly got less rocky as the ship rode the waves instead of crashing into them. Everyone on deck anchored themselves to something on the ship so as to not get tossed overboard. Eugene and Ezio sat side by side by the helm, both soaked to the bone. Eugene's bangs drooped in front of his eyes for the hundredth time that night. His hair had gotten long over the past few months but he never had time to cut.

"Remind me to cut my hair when we get home." He tucked them behind his ears only for them to flop back forward again.

"Hehe, I can do it for you." Ezio flicked his hidden blade out with a smile.

"You are not coming anywhere near my head with a sharp object. Put that thing away." Eugene pushed Ezio's hand away. Ezio laughed once more.

Eugene started to shiver slightly. He wrapped his arms around himself to try and keep warm.

"Here," Ezio passed him a flask, "this will help take the chill off." Eugene took the flask and screwed the top. He took a swing of it.

"That whiskey sucks."

"Sì, but it's better than nothing." Eugene nodded in agreement.

The rest of the night was spent making sure the ship didn't fall apart and keeping warm. The storm finally died sometime throughout the night, and there was nothing but calm, cool waters as they floated along.

Eugene thought about Rapunzel. He didn't mean to get that upset with her, in fact, upset was a bit of an understatement. He was so furious, livid, so…so…he couldn't find the right word for how angry he was. There was only one person he had ever gotten this angry with before and it changed their relationship forever. For better or for worse he still wasn't sure of yet. Rapunzel had hurt him so bad, cut him so deep, he wasn't sure if he could forgive her or not, at least not anytime soon. He knew he should apologize to her It wasn't completely her fault. He knew his father would say the same thing, but Eugene didn't care. He was too tired and too cold to even care how she felt at the moment. Sleep eventually took over as he listened to the water slap up against the sides of the ship and the rocking of the gentle waves always helped. As he slipped away, he thought he heard light sobbing from down below, but he wasn't quite sure if he had dreamed it or not.

* * *

"James, please sit and have some tea." He took a seat in between the two, but never taking his gaze off Carissa. "Now, Carissa you said you might have some information. What was it you wanted to tell us?"

"Well actually I was hoping you could tell me what you know and then I might be able to fill in the blanks."

"Well we-"

"We don't know anything right now." James suddenly interrupted the queen. "They are both safe I can tell you that." A smile crept up on Carissa's face.

"Are you sure about that?" James leaned a little toward Carissa looking hear dead in the eyes.

"Damn sure."

Elizabeth wasn't quite sure what was going on but she could cut the tension in between the two with a knife.

"I seem to be missing something, James what is going on?"

"Oh? So you haven't told her anything, have you?"

"Tell me what, James?" But he didn't respond. He just continued to glare at Carissa.

His gaze was finally broken when he heard Elizabeth's breathing start to falter. Her tea cup slipped from her fingers and crashed to the floor spilling what was left.

"Elizabeth?" She looked dizzy, and her eyes were not focusing on anything.

"Elizabeth what's wrong?" Carissa watched with a menacing grin as the queen was losing consciousness.

"James I…" Was she could get out before she collapsed on James shoulder. He instantly laid her back in the chair.

"Elizabeth. Elizabeth!" He turned to Carissa. "What did you do to her?!" Carissa scoffed.

"Don't worry she is still alive, for now." James lunged for her but she pulled out a knife and James stopped dead in his tracks. "Now you will tell me what I want to know. Where are the princess and the assassin?"

"I don't know, but even if I did, I wouldn't tell you." James spoke through gritted teeth.

"Oh, I think we can change that?" Carissa lunged at James with the knife. James was able to deflect her strike but not before she sliced his upper left arm. They struggled for a bit before James was able to wrestle the knife away from her. It flung out of her grasp hitting the floor with a loud clatter. She was only about 120 pounds, but she was a lot stronger than she looked, and she was fast. James had never found a reason to hit a woman, but in this case, he thought he would make an exception.

Carissa went after the knife, but James was slightly faster and went after her instead. He wrestled her to the ground. She clawed her way to the blade lying underneath the table and James dragged her backward. Carissa kicked James in the face temporarily losing his vision. She grabbed the knife and jumped on top of him. He fought her off trying to keep the knife away from him. James kicked his legs up and Carissa went flying overhead crashing to the ground. James quickly knocked the knife away from her and it slid to the other side. He got up, and as she continued to try and catch her breath from landing flat on her back, James kicked her in the head rendering her unconscious. He breathed in deep trying to calm down and then turned to the queen who, herself, still lay motionless. James ran to her looking for any sign of life. He got close and listened. She was still breathing. It was even and strong.

"Oh thank God." Still he needed to get her to a doctor. He wasn't sure what to do with Carissa, but all he could do with her right now until he got Elizabeth to safety was leave her there. He carefully lifted Elizabeth up and walk toward the hall. He shut the door with his foot and saw one of the maids on the other side of the long hallway.

"Hey! Servent!" The maid looked up. She hesitated, but then noticed who it was and came barreling down the hall.

"My goodness! What happened?"

"I need you to get the doctor immediately."

"Yes sir. Here, there is a spare room right this way let's put here over here." James quickly followed. He laid the limp queen down on the bed. He continued to check her breathing. She was still alive.

"Look, I need you to send four guards up to me now."

"Yes sir right away." And she was off in a hurry.

James took Elizabeth's hand in his own. She was starting to get cold.

"Elizabeth, sweetheart, can you hear me." Nothing

Moments later two guards burst through the door followed by two others right behind.

"Captain!"

"I need you four to look after her, I have already sent for the doctor. Just guard the door and the windows. Make sure no one comes in unless it is me or Doctor Menken. Is that understood?"

"Yes, Sir!" They all shouted in unison.

James ran out of the room looking back one more time at his love in dread, fearing the worst. But he couldn't think of that right now. He ran back to the study to get the culprit, but when he opened the door there was no on inside. He noticed the curtains were blowing signaling that she had gone out the window. The knife was missing too. James finally noticed the pain in his arm as he slid down the wall clutching his arm in pain. He let out a slight groan as he removed his right hand too look at it. It was deep, and it slashed across the width of his arm. Blood continued to seep through his shirt and down the rest of his arm. He applied pressure to try and stop the bleeding. He pushed himself up and went to go see if the doctor had made it yet. He walked back in the spare room where the queen was to see Doctor Menken hovering over her. Doctor straightened at the sight of him.

"What happened to you?" James just shook his head as he walked toward the doctor.

"Is she…is she alright" He breathed.

"She is still alive, yes. But I think I need to check out that gash you have." James shook his head.

"No take care of her first." James started to falter. Doctor Menken held him up before he completely collapsed to the ground.

"James she is fine, her vitals are normal there is nothing more I can do for now until I see a change. She was probably just slipped some sleeping medicine." He set James carefully in the chair next to the bed. "Now let me take a look at the arms of yours." He ripped open James sleeve. Menken winced at the sight of his arm. "You wanna tell me how this happened." James had his eyes closed as he controlled his breathing and keeping the room from spinning.

"I got into a fight."

"Well I can see that." He took a thread, needle, some iodine, and bandages from his black bag. He dabbed some iodine onto a bit of cloth. "This is gonna hurt." He placed it on the wound and pressed hard. Immediately James sucked in through his teeth.

"Ahh!"

"Told ya. Almost done." He finished cleaning the wound and picked up the needle and thread. "So what is going on around here, James? People are starting to ask questions."

James didn't know how to answer that. Keeping Eugene's promise was a lot harder than he anticipated. If he told the truth, they would all be in danger, however, if he didn't the kingdom would start revolting demanding an answer. He wasn't even sure how Eugene was able to keep a secret like that for as long as he did without someone eventually finding him. He could barely keep it quiet for a few days.

"Listen I know it looks bad, but the people talk to you. I need you to keep them quiet. I need you to tell them that things are fine. Tell them the Queen had a dizzy spell due to the stress she has been dealing with, something." Doctor Menken smiled.

"I am not allowed to disclose my patient's medical history." James smiled back.

"Thank you Doc."

"In the meantime, I will try to dissuade gossip and malicious talkers." He finished stitching up James' arm. He poured a little bit more iodine over it and James tensed up. He took a towel and wiped away the blood. Then he wrapped James' arm in gauze sealing it tight to prevent any infection. "Keep this on all day and then unwrap it at night when you sleep to give it a chance to breath. Take some extra bandages so you can wrap it in new bandages in the morning. Do not reuse the same bandages. That will cause for infection and possible gang green which will result in the amputation of your arm. Is that understood?"

"You're like…worst case scenario type person aren't you?"

"Hmm, I just like my patients to know severity of their actions if they do not listen to my exact instructions. Here," he gave James a small vile with some mixing powder in it, "mix some of this in your tea, or whatever you like to drink, _**not alcohol**_, and it will help with the pain. Use it as needed."

"This stuff isn't gonna make me all loopy like it did Rider is it?" Menken chuckled.

"No, this isn't quite as strong, and besides, Rapunzel sort of over dosed him. That wasn't supposed to happen." James stared at the vile for a moment.

"He is quite a kid isn't he?" Menken tilted his head at James.

"He's not quite a "kid" any more. He's what, 25, 26 now."

"Huh, yeah I guess not. It just seems like yesterday that I was chasing his ass all around. Now he's the king! Just blows my mind."

"Why don't you get yourself some rest? I will stay here and watch over Elizabeth until I know for sure. There should be another spare room right down the hall so you won't be far. I will call for you if anything changes."

"Sleep." Sleep sounded good, very good, but he wasn't sure if he was able to. "Yeah I guess." He stood up slowly dragging himself down the hall bloodied shirt and all. He dragged his feet to the spare room at the other end of the hall. James sunk down onto the bed and before his head even hit the pillow he was dead to the world.

* * *

*I want to say I have heard this line from somewhere else but I can't quite remember. It was in my brain and I thought it was a good idea for the story so I added it. I just don't want people to think I am plagiarizing.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

"Gregor!" Carissa quickly shuffled into the room where Sir Gregor was bent over a map on a table.

"Did you find out anything?" Gregor asked, not looking up from his map.

"No, unfortunately not. What about you, did you find anything?"

"Coincidentally, yes. One of my contacts saw a ship not too long ago flying the Corona flag heading in this direction." He dragged his finger across the map that ended to Venice, Italy.

"Perfect. Does Ivan know that you still don't know exactly where they are?"

"If he did I wouldn't be alive right now, and we must keep it that way."

* * *

"LAND HO!"

Eugene awoke with a start, blinded by the sun. He shielded his eyes as he sat up. He looked around trying to get his bearing. He was still laying at the ships helm, his father above him steering.

"Well, buongiorno sonno di bellezza (good morning sleeping beauty)."

"How long have I been asleep?" Eugene asked groggily squinting up to Ezio.

"All morning, but don't worry, I have everything under control. I have us back on course and we are about to hit land."

"What port are we coming into?"

"Vinezia (Venice)"

"Bene (Good)"

Eugene twisted his neck and back cracking his entire spine and then relaxed with a sigh. He looked up at the mainmast. The Coronian flag was still waving. _'I should probably take that down.' _Eugene slowly got up, and started walking over to the starboard side of the ship and climbed quickly to the top of the mainmast. He pulled the flag down and tucked it into one of his belts for safe keeping. Before he climbed back down he took this moment to look around, enjoy the peacefulness, the calm. He could spot land just on the horizon. He stayed perched up on the top boom. Looking down he judged his distance to be at least forty to fifty feet up. He never felt as comfortable as he does when he is up high. It was his comfort zone, his safety net, somewhere where not many people could follow if he wanted to get away and be alone. He looked down at everyone bustling around getting the ship ready to dock. He spotted one brunette with a purple nightgown on and a green cloak staring back up. He was still angry over what she had said to him, and she at him. Neither of them seemed to be ready to speak to each other. But one thing was for certain, no matter how stubborn they were, both missed being in each other's arms embracing one another.

Eugene looked back toward the horizon. He wasn't ready to come down yet. He leaned against the mast with one foot up on the boom resting his arm on his knee while the other leg dangled off. He need a little more time to himself before he came back down.

Rapunzel saw him get more comfortable in his position.

"He hates me."

"Oh, give it time, Signorina (Miss). He will come down when he is ready. Trust me if I know my son, he will come around eventually, you just have let him come to you."

"Your son. All this time, I had no idea. I always thought he was orphaned. And then I find out he had been lying to me. I don't understand." Ezio sighed.

"That is something he has to talk to you about, I cannot do it for him. But you have to be understanding of what he tells you. He did it because he loves you. I have never seen Gabriel love somebody, or something, as much as he loves you. He pours his heart and soul into caring for you. You have my word on that." Rapunzel smiled at him.

"Thank you Ezio." He nodded his head and smiled.

"Prego"

Rapunzel took one more look at Eugene who still sat comfortably way up ahead before she headed back down to her room.

It wasn't long before they finally reached their destination; Vinezia, Italia. Eugene had finally climbed down jumping off the side rail of the ship. They docked in and everyone started shuffling back and forth taking cargo and supplies off and putting them in horse drawn carts.

Eugene walked back on the ship from carrying a load. Ezio strolled up to him.

"Is Rapunzel still down in the cabin?"

"Sì, but go easy on her. She's had a rough time."

"Oh I'm not gonna talk to her. I'm just gonna let her know it's time to go."

"I know, but when you do…"

"Dad, not now." He walked pasted Ezio irritated, but Ezio quickly grabbed his upper arm holding him back.

"Gabriel."

But Eugene wasn't having it. Eugene quickly jerked his arm out of his father's grip and walked away. Ezio just sighed in frustration, closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Eugene headed toward the cabin and walked down the steps ducking his head. He knocked twice before opening the door. Rapunzel was curled up in her cloak on her bed.

"Time to go." She didn't answer, she didn't even move. "Rapunzel."

"I heard you." Without another word he shut the door and left.

She didn't want him to see, but Rapunzel's eyes were red and puffy, and a feeling of despair that she thought she would never feel with Eugene. She slowly rose from the bed and looked in a mirror on her bedside. She wiped away the tears and tried to clear her mind. She was glad she had a hood on her cloak so she could hide her face. Not of fear of being found by her enemies, but so Eugene would not see her. She hoped and prayed they would get over this. But with the amount of lying and hiding, it would be like trying to put back a shattered mirror. There would be too many cracks. Ezio said Eugene had lied because he loved her, but who lies for love? Gothel did. Rapunzel could feel the hot tears starting to well up again. She took in several deep breaths and looked up to let the tears run back in. She had to be strong. She remembered she would not let anyone see here cry when Eugene was dying. Now she won't let Eugene see her cry when she feels like she is dying inside. She lifted the hood over her head and it covered just enough of her face that no one could tell. She stood tall and lifted her head a little and walked out the door.

As she walked out into the sunlight, she found that Ezio was waiting for her, not Eugene. He held out his hand and she walked up the rest of the steps from the cabin.

"Gabriel is a little busy so I offered to bring you back to where we are staying."

Rapunzel spotted Eugene nearly dragging Lucas by the collar off the ship over to another one that was docked. She took his hand and he led her off the ship to a nearby horse. Ezio helped Rapunzel up and then mounted in front grabbing the reins and leading them to their destination.

"Eugene come on why do I have to go back?"

"Because I said so." Eugene corralled Lucas onto the ramp leading to another ship. "Mi scusi, non questa nave tornate in Inghilterra? (Excuse me, does this ship head back to England?)"

"Sì, lascia in un'ora. (Yes, it leaves in an hour.)"

"Bene. (Good)" Eugene reached in one of his pouches and pulled out several gold coins and handed it to the man. "Assicurati che non lascia la nave. (Make sure he does not leave this ship.)" Eugene pointed to Lucas who was looking quite depressed. He walked back over to Lucas.

"You are getting on this ship and you are going home, that's it."

"Please I will do anything, let me train. Please!" Eugene started walking back down the ramp. "Please don't make me go back. You don't know how miserable it is over there." Eugene stopped half way down the ramp. "I always feel trapped, and I am always afraid at home. Please just let me stay, I promise I will stay out of the way."

Eugene knew all too well what it felt like to be trapped. To be stuck in a life he couldn't get out of. Maybe he knew this kid's pain or he had a soft spot for kids in need, but something in his mind changed. He turned around to face Lucas. With one more moment to think, Eugene walked back up the ramp to Lucas.

"You have got one shot, you fuck it up and I am shipping your ass back to England myself, got it?" All Lucas could do was smile.

Eugene turned and walked back down, but this time, Lucas followed behind with a skip in his step. He led him to his horse that was waiting patiently. Lucas climbed up first and Eugene in front. He took the reins clicked his tongue and off they went.

The ride was spent silent. Eugene was lost in his thoughts and Lucas was lost in the sights and sounds of Venice. There were so many new things to take in. Lucas was constantly whipping his head around trying to soak everything up not wanting to linger on one thing to long for fear he might miss something. It was clear that he was not one of the locals despite that fact that he was dressed as an Englishmen. Everything seemed so bright and colorful, not like England where everything was damp and grey. He saw jesters singing songs and doing tricks for money, he saw artists selling their work while painting a beautiful scene of Venice. There were gypsies dancing in the streets with things that chimed and clanged. Carts of fresh fruit were being sold everywhere. Children constantly were running around chasing each other in some sort of weird game that Lucas had never seen before. One child would touch the other child and then that child would run after the other, and it would go back and forth. It looked like fun but also very exhausting. There were blacksmiths, tailors, jewelry makers, glass blowers, and so much more. They went over a small foot bridge and as he looked over, he saw a long narrow boat. One man was standing holding a long stick pushing it back and forth in the water and there were two others who looked to be very much in love embracing one another. Ah, Venice was amazing. It was beautiful, it was magnificent, it was-

"Where here, hop down" Lucas woke up from his day dream and realized that they had stopped at a large house that looked like it was right at the edge of town…away from the beautiful chaos that was Venice.

"We're staying here?" Lucas whined

"Hey you wanted to tag along, don't complain about where we are staying. Besides once we get in I don't think you will be complaining too much." Lucas wasn't so sure about that. It didn't matter what the inside looked like, and how nice and spacious it might be. It wouldn't hold a candle the sight he had

just-

All of a sudden they were bombarded by beautiful girls as soon as they walked through the front door. Lucas had never seen so many woman, nothing but woman in one concentrated area in his entire life. He looked at them all whipping his head back and forth. They all had something in common, all were very curvy, and all barely had anything on…barely. Every sensory nerve in Lucas' brain was going off at once; he didn't know what to do. All the women back home hid their curves and covered every inch of their bodies, but here, they were to be marveled, at, to be glorified. The women gawked, oohed, and ahhed, at the two men that made their way through. Eugene noticed Lucas was freaking out a bit.

"Just keep your head down, look at the floor or something, you're gonna give yourself whip lash."

Women started flocking their direction. They all surrounded Lucas.

"Ooh, he looks yummy." One said.

"Oh a new toy to play with." Another said. Eugene had to interject.

"Hands of ladies he's fifteen."

"We don't mind." One particular had said. She had her gaze locked onto Lucas.

"Yeah, try again in three years." Eugene grabbed Lucas and hauled him up the stairs before clothes started being torn off.

"Eugene, what is the place?" Eugene looked back at him and sort of laughed. This kid really was sheltered.

"It's a brothel." Lucas' eyes got wide.

"You mean like-"

"Yeees."

"Whoa." Eugene just shook his head. Oh the blissfulness of innocence…seems really boring.

Eugene led Lucas up to his room.

"You can stay here." Lucas walked in. There wasn't much. A simple room with a hardwood floor, a bed, a small window that looked at the side of another building next door, but he didn't care. He was away from home. Lucas turned back to Eugene.

"So…when can I train?" Eugene rolled his eyes and shut the door.

Eugene walked back down the stairs to a group of girls milling around. Some were entertaining and others were leading their customers up stairs for some private time. He snuck his way past the hoard and into a small study. He shut the door quietly, locking it, making sure he was not being followed. He made sure the window was shut and locked, and closed the curtains. He walked over to the fireplace. It had been many years since the last time he had been here, so it was difficult to remember where the lock was. Putting his hand up and feeling the wall around the fire place he finally felt one of the large tiles give way and the fireplace lowered. He slowly stepped in and the fireplace came back up concealing the secret entrance. He walk down a long dark hall leading to a long set of stairs. When he reached the bottom he came to a large room that had been sectioned off in several areas. Above in a loft was a makeshift library. In another area was a training ring. And the largest area was a ceremonial hall. Many Assassin's hid out here; both men and woman alike. A group of Assassins were training while a few of them were up in the library. Eugene had spotted Rapunzel in the library. He wondered around running into people he knew and some he hadn't met. He spotted his father speaking with other Assassin's.

"Make sure you are ready when the time comes. There is no telling when they will arrive." The Assassins nodded and left. "Ah, Gabriel, glad you finally made it. We need to make sure everyone is ready and on their guard. Ivan and his men should be looking for us by now and there is no telling how close they are."

"Yeah that's something I want to talk to you about."

"What is it?"

"I want Rapunzel trained."

"Oh? And you want her coming out with us?"

"No, not really, but if there is ever a time that she has to come with us, whether to move her to another location or what, I don't want her useless. I need to know that she will be able to at least put up a fight. I mean, I know she already can to some degree, but she is not prepared for this."

"And I take it you want me to train her."

"You're the best." Ezio looked at Eugene for a moment.

"Are you asking me because I am the best…or are you asking me because you are still angry with her?" Eugene didn't respond. He only averted his eyes. "Look at me Gabriel, you two have something that not many people do. I am not going to stand here and watch you waste everything you fought to protect all because you were troppo stupido (too stupid) to listen to me earlier."

"Why are you trying to give me advice about serious relationships?" Ezio didn't like Eugene's tone. He glared at his son.

"I know a little more than you do, Gabriel" Ezio slowly started walking away.

"Coming from the man whose relationship was built on thievery, near death, and a one night stand." Eugene thought his father was out of ear shot. He wasn't expecting Ezio to quickly come back and back handed him hard in the face. It shook up Eugene. He seemed to forget how quickly his father moved, even in his old age. He grabbed Eugene's jaw and pushed him up against one of the pillars with one arm against Eugene's chest gripping his lapel and whispered harshly in his ear.

"Non hai mai ... parli tu madre in modo nuovo. Non farmi capire? (Don't you EVER…talk about you mother in the manner again. Do I make myself clear)?" Eugene quietly responded.

"Yes sir."

From above in the loft Rapunzel could see Eugene get reprimanded. Ezio had walked away as Eugene just stood there a moment clearly looking a little ashamed of himself. He rubbed his cheek slightly and started walking toward the stairs that led to the library. Rapunzel quickly turned and ran back to where she had been sitting. When Eugene made it to the loft, Rapunzel was sitting on a small footstool at a table with a chessboard out, but playing with no one. He slowly walked up behind her.

"The game is more fun when you actually play with someone." She didn't respond. He walked around to the other side. "Mind if I play?"

"You can do whatever you want." She kept her eyes on the board moving pieces around.

Eugene took a seat across form her. He held one of the knight pieces and looked at it. He studied the design and the color of it. It was a red and white, transparent glass set, very beautiful, hand carved. He remembered so many times playing with this exact chess set when he was growing up; playing all by himself most occasions.

They set up the board to play; Eugene being the red side and Rapunzel being the white side.

"I am sorry about going off on you, Rapunzel." She didn't say anything, only continued to set up her side of the board. "I was upset, and…" Eugene was having a hard time finding the right words and making them make sense. "Look you really pissed me off." She stopped setting up and just listened. "What you said to me was…probably the worst thing you could have done to me. You made it sound like what I did for you…didn't even matter. I am not trying to put myself on a pedestal, but…damn give me a little bit of credit. I gave up everything for you, and I know you were willing to do the same for me, but…I just…" He was getting frustrated not being able to find the right words. He ran his fingers through his hair as he racked his brain trying to figure out what exactly it was he was trying to say. He had gone over the speech a million times in his head but now that he had a chance to say something, nothing came to mind.

"I'm sorry too." Eugene looked up. "But you made it sound like what I went through was completely insignificant, like I had no right to upset. Eighteen years of my life was wasted with…that horrible woman who used me, and lied to me for her own gain."

"Rapunzel you have every right to feel the way you do. What you can't do is use it as an excuse to make it seem like everyone else around you is doing the same thing." Rapunzel didn't know what to say. "When have I ever held you back from anything you wanted to do? When have I ever really lied to you for my own personal gain, and don't say anything about this, because you have no idea how hard it was to keep this quiet." Rapunzel couldn't come up with a response. "I know I made it seem like your pain and struggle was insignificant and I am sorry for that, but you really have to stop using it as an excuse, especially with me. Rapunzel, I love you so much, I would never in my life ever dream of trying to use you. I am not saying you should be over it. Honestly I don't know if I could get over something like that. But don't let it be your crutch.

Neither said anything for a while. They went back to their chess game. Rapunzel made the first move with a pawn. Then Eugene made a move.

"I think it might be easier to understand everything if I just told you from the beginning…"


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

"_Gabriel! Gabriel, venire qui (come here)!" _

_Three year old Gabriel Eugene Auditore came running from outside. He had a wooden sword in one hand and a metal cooking bowl on top of his head. _

"_Il mio bambino(My child), I need my bowl back." Rosa Auditore picked her son up and gave him a kiss on the cheek as she snatched the bowl off his head. _

"_But, but momma I was fighting piwates! Eugene shrieked._

"_Were you now?"_

"_Uh huh, and um guess…guess what?"_

"_What?" She bent down to his level with her hand on her knees. She looked into his big amber eyes as he got excited to tell her his big news. In a whisper Eugene answered._

"_I got 'em." She straightened back up with a smile._

"_You did? Oh papa would be very proud." _

_As if on cue, Ezio walk in through the door. _

"_Papa!" Eugene ran to his papa and Ezio bent down and scooped him up. "Papa I was fighting piwates"_

"_I can see that." He took the wooden play sword from his little boy's hand._

"_Uncle Leo made it fo me."_

"_That was very kind of him. Did you thank him?_

" _Yes papa." _

"_Malto bene.(Very good.)" He put his son down and Eugene ran outside to play again. _

_Ezio walked up to Rosa, wrapped his arms around her, and gave her a kiss hello. Rosa held onto Ezio tight, happy that he was home safe. Though he had stopped his work as an Assassin, it was still sometimes dangerous. The Templars knew who he was and still wanted him dead whether or not he took part in the cause. It was a struggle they lived with every day, but with three years behind them of not being a part of the brotherhood, the odds of anyone finding them seemed slim. _

"_Ciao amore mio (Hello my love)." _

"_Ciao." They smiled at one another as they gazed into each other's eyes. Just as they were about to enjoy another long kiss, Eugene popped his head in from the back door._

"_PAPA! COME HERE!" Ezio looked over at his gleeful son who managed to steel the metal bowl again wearing mischievous grin on his face. _

"_Go play, Son." Ezio warned. Rosa lightly laughed._

"_It's his bed time anyway. How about you put him to bed, and I will…get ready for you." Her own mischievous smile came across her face. _

_Ezio smiled and kissed the back of her hand "Mmmm, I like the sound of that." He growled._

_Ezio went out the back to get Eugene ready for bed. He came back in holding Eugene in one arm and handed Rosa the metal bowl. _

"_Alright my little Assassino time for bed."_

"_Noooo!"_

"_Yeeees."_

"_But-"_

"_Ahhh, I don't want to hear it."_

_Rosa smiled to herself listening to her baby son's protests of being forced to sleep at such an inconvenient time. Oh, the cruelty. _

_Upstairs Ezio tucked his son into bed. He sat on the side while Eugene got sunk down into the blankets. Ezio brushed his tiny little bangs back. _

"_Now, what do we do if we get separated?"_

"_Wun to the wiver and don't look back."_

"_Good. And what do we do when we get there?"_

"_Stay hiding, stay quiet and wait fo you to find me."_

"_Do we tell anyone our name?"_

"_No sir." _

"_Good boy. You close your eyes and sleep now my son. And tomorrow I will take you to the big ship and you can fight pirates, ok? Eugene smiled and nodded his head. _

"_Papa?"_

"_Yes, son." Eugene gripped his blanket in his tiny hands no longer smiling._

"…_What if…what if you can't find me?"_

_Ezio softly brushed Eugene's cheek with the back of his fingers. "I will always find you my son, I promise." _

_The corners of Eugene's mouth slowly curled up as he looked up at his father. Ezio brushed Eugene's tiny bangs and kissed his forehead. _

"_Go to sleep now." Eugene nodded his head and closed his eyes. Ezio got up and put out the oil lamp that was lit. Before Ezio closed his door, he took one more look at his sleeping son and smiled._

* * *

_Eugene woke up to the sound of his mother slamming his bedroom door shut. It was dark so he knew it wasn't morning time yet._

"_Gabriel, wake up son, you have to go!" Rosa spoke in a frantic whisper. There was fear in her voice. _

"_Momma?" Eugene rubbed his eyes trying to wake up. _

"_Shhh, come on, you have to go." She picked him up and brought him to the window. There was an odd smell coming from his mother's hair. It smelled like it was burning. Eugene looked up at his mother. He had never seen her terrified before. Momma was brave, momma was strong. Why was she scared? Nothing scared momma, especially with papa around. Where was papa? _

"_You must climb down and run."_

"_But where's papa?" _

"_Go Gabriel, now!" _

_Rosa held her son out of his bedroom window as he latched onto the large tree branch. _

"_Go, my son, and don't look back." _

_Eugene made his way down the tree safely. For only being three he had already shown that he had the ability to climb. He looked back at his window waiting for his mother to follow, but she didn't. He saw the smoke rising into the sky, and there was an orange glow that started to fill up his bedroom window. He wanted to call out, but he couldn't. He was to stay quiet. _

_Eugene ran; he ran as fast as he could outside of town to the river where he was told to wait for his father. His father would be there he was sure of it. His father would always find him; he promised. _

_Eugene hid in the brush and kept an eye out for him, looking in all directions, but no one came. Eugene wasn't sure how long he was there for, but he felt himself getting sleepy. His little eyes started to droop. He tried to fight away the tiredness, but he couldn't. Eugene drifted off in a restless sleep. He dreamed about his mother and father. He could see them and he called out to them. He could see them looking for him. But they couldn't find him. They ran around frantically until they slowly walked away. Eugene screamed for them, but to no avail._

* * *

"_I asked you a question, boy. What is your name?" _

_An old woman sternly asked him the question several times. And each time Eugene kept quiet. He was told by his mother and father to never tell anyone his name. Bad men would find him, and take him away. So he stayed quiet._

_The woman in front of him looked scary and old. She had grey hair and it was pulled back into a tight bun. Her eyes were wide and her lips were pursed together. She had thin spectacles that sat at the very edge of her nose that she glared over._

"_Maybe he doesn't speak, madam."_

"_That is ridiculous, what child doesn't speak? Answer me this instant." She slapped a ruler hard on top of her desk to enforce her demand. It only made Eugene jump, but still did not utter a word. _

"_Let me try."_

_The kinder younger woman next to the old scary one bent down at Eugene's eye level. She had bright blue eyes and dark long hair, like momma's._

"_Do you know how to speak, figlio (child)?" Eugene nodded his head. "Bene (Good)." She smiled. "Now can you tell me your name?" Eugene slowly shook his head. "Why not?" She only got another slow shake. _

"_That is it, put him in the cellar. He will stay there until he decides he will cooperate and tell me his name." The old woman stated impatiently. _

"_Please he only just arrived, he is probably terrified. Please I will watch over him." The old woman glared up at her and removed her glasses. _

"_Fine, but you need to get a name." She demanded. _

"_Sì signora (Yes, madam)." She scooped Eugene up in her arms and he clung to her in fear of the old woman. She brought him up to the kitchen and sat him at the table. She brought out some milk and bread. _

"_Here, you must be hungry." He only stared at it. "Come now, you have to eat something." Eugene didn't move. _

_Instead he started to cry. His lip quivered, and tears ran down his face. Miss Anabel picked him up and started rocking him trying to sooth him. She continued to rock him and hummed him a lullaby. So many times she had been in this position. So many children came through the orphanage doors and stayed there until they were of age. _

_Orphans were all over Rome, but not many were cared for. Madam Agatha held the largest orphanage in Rome, but was also the harshest. Children were scared of her. She ran a tight ship. Everyone over the age of three was out of bed by sunrise. They did their chores before breakfast and due to the lack of funds, breakfast was usually the only meal of the day; that was if it wasn't taken away by one of the older kids. The rest of the time was spent trying to stay out of Madam Agatha's way. Sometimes tutors came by to help teach the children how to read and write, but it was rare. There was no running, no shouting, and rarely any speaking inside the house. If there was any noise to be made it was strictly outside, and Madam Agatha better not hear it otherwise they would get the switch. And most importantly, there was no fighting. If they got caught fighting, not only would they get the switch they would be put in the cellar for the night. The cellar was rumored to be haunted. Children often told stories of others dying down there because of rats and disease. They say that if you shine a light down there you would be able to see the remains of other children that were left and eaten by rats. Children dared each other to go down with one of the matches stolen from the kitchen to see if it was true, but no one was brave enough to see. It was bad enough that when they got into big enough trouble they would have to stay down there. They didn't want to make it worse by see the skeletons of missing children. _

_Eugene's sobs slowly turned into little hiccups. He eventually fell asleep in Miss Anabel's arms and she carried him to the giant room where the rest of the children slept. She tucked him in and pulled a chair up next to his cot. She watched over him the rest of the night. _

_The next morning Eugene woke up to someone lightly shaking him awake. His blurry little eyes opened and he saw a woman with dark long hair. _

"_Momma?" His vision cleared and came to the harsh realization it was not momma. His chin quivered as he started to whimper._

"_Oh, no, little boy, don't start crying its ok." Anabel picked him up and distracted him with a book. "Guardare, guardare a questo (Look, look at this.)" She opened the front cover and read the title. "The Tales of Flynnigan Rider." She read him a story out of the book, and he was instantly captivated. He pictured his father as Flynnigan Rider, sailing his ship around the world and fighting pirates. _

_After she read him a story, she closed the book. She looked down at him and brushed his hair with her fingers._

"_Do you want to tell me your name now?" He looked down at the book. He knew he couldn't tell anyone his name. His father made him promise. But spending a night in the cellar seemed terrifying. How he wished his papa would hurry up and find him. Where was he, why didn't he find him at the river like he said he would? _

_Madam Agatha came stomping in the room._

"_Well, do we have a name yet?" Anabel hesitated. "Well…"_

"_His…his last name is Fitzherebert." Agatha eyed her. Anabel hoped she would buy it. _

"_And what of his first name?"_

"…_I haven't gotten that far yet. Please give it time."_

"_The head master demands all the names of children. We run an orphanage, Miss Anabel. Our only job is to keep track of the children and keep them out of trouble. That is it. We do not have time to coddle to every lost child. Is that understood?"_

"_Sì, signora (Yes madam.)" _

"_Good, if I do not have a full name by the end of the day, he will receive punishment. He needs to understand there are rules and they need to be followed."_

"_I understand. I will get it to you." _

_Madam Agatha left the room. Eugene still sat in Anabel's lab gripping the new book he was just given. He couldn't quite understand everything that was just said, but he knew it was about him and it was not good. _

_Anabel spent the rest of the afternoon with Eugene. All day she tried to get his name out. But he couldn't. His father would be very upset if he disobeyed. Anabel even tried to bribe him. She took him out into the city, which was a rare occasion. She tried to get him to eat, but he still wouldn't eat much. She took him to see a puppet show, and bought him ice cream. He did seem to take to the ice cream pretty quickly, but still no name. _

_It was getting dark, and soon it would be time for bed. This also meant she needed to give Madam Agatha a name. She couldn't lie to her again. If Agatha found out she would lose her job. She already gave him the last name of her late fiancé. Anabel has never believed in lying, but in the case of keeping a child from having to endure the cold damp cellar and possible die from sickness, she would make an exception._

_Anabel knelt in front of Eugene and pleaded with him._

"_Please just tell me your first name that is all you have to do. Do you want to sleep in the cellar tonight? Eugene looked down. She cupped his chin in her hand. "Look, if you have to lie that's fine just tell me, please." _

_The wheels in Eugene's head started spinning. He was always told to tell the truth by his parents. His parents were grown-ups. Miss Anabel was a grown-up. She was telling him to lie, and he was also told by his parents to do what a grown-up says. So, it must be ok to lie, right? Eugene knew if his name got out he could be in trouble, and his papa would not be able to find him. His papa told him that when two people want something different that they have to meet in the middle. He called it a compripise...comrise…he couldn't remember but he knew what it meant. _

"_Mi chiamo…(My name is…) Eugene." _

_It wasn't exactly a lie, it was his name, just not his first name, and he certainly wasn't giving his last name, but it wasn't the whole truth either. He thought if he told his middle name, no one would take him away and his papa would still be able to find him._

_Anabel smiled. "That's a good boy." _

_She picked him up and tucked him into bed. Before she left, he pulled his book out from between his bed and the wall and held it up to her. She looked into his large amber eyes, and Anabel couldn't resist. She sat next to him so he could see the pictures as she read to him, and before she finished reading the next story, Eugene Fitzherbert was fast asleep. _

_Five years later Eugene was still at the orphanage. By now he had gotten countless strikes from the switch and many nights spent in cellar. Eugene proved himself to be quite the hero at the orphanage by the younger kids. Any child younger than him Eugene always protected against the bigger kids. He read to them every night, acting out the scenes. He even stood up to the mean old Madam Agatha, but that usually resulted in him getting thrown down the cellar stairs. _

_One night, when all the other kids were fast asleep, Eugene stayed wake. He looked outside his dirty window next to his bed. The visions haunted his dreams. He couldn't remember everything. He remembered smelling smoke and being alone and cold. But one thing he never forgot, one thing he always held onto was his father's promise. 'I will always find you my son, I promise.' He put his hand on the window as if trying to reach out. _

"_Papa," he whispered, "Papa, please find me."_

_He laid his head down on his arms as he leaned against the window sill. He could barely remember what he looked like anymore. He couldn't even remember what his mother looked like. Had they forgotten him? Did they not want him anymore? Eugene was starting to believe that because he disobeyed all those years ago, being left behind was his punishment. He was told to run and not look back, but he remembered seeing smoke. He remember turning around waiting for his mother to follow him. That was his first mistake. Then he lied. It wasn't a complete lie, but it still wasn't the truth. He started blaming himself for being stuck at the orphanage. Madam Agatha always told him that no one would want to adopt such a horrible little boy. He started think that was why he was given up, abandoned. _

_Eugene noticed someone's reflection in the window. He turned around to see who it was. It was Luther, one of the older boys, and also one of the meaner ones. He was holding something; it was Eugene's book. _

"_Give it back, Luther."_

"_Or, what?" Luther started to rip some of the pages. Eugene gasped._

"_Please, just give it back, and I will forget it ever happened." Luther laughed in his face._

"_You will forget, HA! You think I am afraid of you, Fitzherbert?" He tore another page. Eugene's anger started to rise. "Didn't Miss Anabel give this to you?" Eugene didn't like the way Luther said Anabel's name. "Yeah I remember when you first came here. You were nothing but a little runt who would always cry for his mommy and daddy. They left you Fitzherbert, nobody wants you. Even Miss Anabel left you. She died so she could get away from you." _

_That was Eugene's breaking point. All at once Eugene sprung from his bed and lunged at Luther knocking him to the ground. Eugene started yelling while continually pounding Luther in the face with his fists and Luther screamed for help. This instantly woke everyone up, and they all started chanting 'FIGHT, FIGHT FIGHT!' _

_Madam Agatha came bursting into the room. All the children were gathered around the two on the ground and Agatha pushed her way through the circle pulling Eugene off of Luther. _

"_WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?!" She pulled Eugene up by the collar of his night shirt and pulled Luther off the ground by his wrist._

"_He hit me Madam, Eugene hit me! I saw him trying to climb out the window and I tried to stop him, and he hit me!" Luther was in hysterics._

"_THAT'S NOT TRUE HE STOLE MY-" WHAP! Eugene received a hard back hand to the face by Madam Agatha._

"_That is quite enough out of you Eugene Fitzherbert. I will not tolerate it anymore, do you understand me?" _

"_BUT IT WASN'T MY FAULT!"_

"_ENOUGH!" She dragged Eugene out of the door, outside to the cellar. All the while he struggled to get out of her grip. "You are going to stay down here until you decide you are going to behave yourself, young man!" _

"_NO, PLEASE, I'LL BE GOOD, I PROMISE!" _

_Agatha opened the cellar door. When she tried to toss him down, her hand got too close to his mouth and Eugene clamped down on her fingers. She screamed in pain and jerked her hand out of his mouth but didn't let go of him._

"_You little FOOL!" She slapped him hard, again and again. Eugene cried out begging her to stop. She shoved him once and he went tumbling down the dirt steps of the cellar. "You will stay down there until I feel you are ready to come out." She slammed the door and the darkness surrounded him. _

_Eugene ran up and pounded on the door above him demanding he be let out. Tears ran down his face and he could taste blood in his mouth. He continued to scream and pound on the door, but then he started screaming for his papa._

"_YOU PRMISED YOU WOULD ALWAYS FIND ME!" Eugene crumpled to the damp dirt floor and sobbed. "You promised, Papa," He whimpered, "You promised." _

_Little Eugene curled himself into a ball on the ground and cried himself to sleep._

* * *

_Eugene stood in front of the side wall of the orphanage He leaned up against the wall with his amrs bracing him for what he was about to receive. All the children stood in formation facing his back. Madam Agatha stood to the side with a leather strap. _

"_Let this be a lesson to all of you." She announced. "You follow my rules, or you pay the consequences. Is that understood?"_

"_Yes Madam Agatha." They droned in unison. _

"_Eugene Fitzherbert, you will receive five lashings for the trouble you have caused. Do you understand why?" He didn't respond. "So be it" _

_Eugene received the five lashes to his back in front of everyone. They all jumped at the sound of the cracks as it made contact. Eugene bit his lip to keep from crying out. His chin quivered and he fought tooth and nail to keep the tears back. Finally it was over, but the stinging pain continued to linger. When it was all over, she announced, "You will stay here for the rest of the day. You are being made an example of. Your disobedience will not be tolerated." She turned to the rest of the children who watched in horror. "Anyone caught socializing with him will receive the same punishment" _

_Eugene leaned his head against the wall as a few tears dripped to the ground. He was hungry and tired, and his back hurt. He tried his best not to move but it was difficult and it caused his pants to brush up against the welts only causing more pain. He wished that he had never been found. He wished that he had just been left there on the side of the river bank. His parents clearly didn't want him, and he didn't want to stay at the orphanage, but he had no other place to go. Eugene was heartbroken; more heartbroken than he had ever felt. He wished more than anything to be able to close his eyes and it would all disappear; that he could wish himself away. He didn't want to exist anymore. No one would miss him, and everyone else would be better off. _

_Eugene had been left on that wall all day and all night. No one talked to him, no one acknowledged him, not even Luther. It wasn't until well after dark, when everyone had gone to bed, that Madam Agatha had called him in. Eugene legs were so stiff and sore that when he tried to move, his knees buckled and he collapsed to the ground. He sniffled trying to keep from crying. _

_Then he heard something. He thought he heard someone moving. He peered into the darkness. He saw something flash across. All of a sudden, he saw someone in a white hood come straight for him. He was terrified, and his first thought was from years ago. 'Gabriel, if anyone finds out who you are, they will come after you.' The words of his father echoed in his head. He tried to get up and run, but his legs wouldn't work. The white hooded figure grabbed him and covered his mouth with their hand. Eugene bit hard and tried to squirm out of their clutches. But the hooded figure held tight and only removed his hand from his mouth. Eugene screamed at the top of his lungs as the figure carried him off into the darkness._

* * *

_Eugene woke up in a strange room. He didn't know where he was, or how long he had been asleep. He did know that he was in a very comfortable bed, with the warmest and softest blankets he had ever felt. He looked around and nothing looked familiar. It wasn't a huge room. It was significantly smaller than the room he shared with thirty to forty other children with. But there was a warm hue in the room from the low oil lamp that was lit. The red curtains blew slightly from the window being open. He could tell it was dark outside. He pushed himself up and off the bed. He back was still sore, but the stinging was gone. He looked down at himself and noticed he had on clean pajama shirt and pants. They were actually clean and didn't smell like mildew. He felt clean. The dirt from his knees where gone and his fingernails were no longer black underneath. He looked outside his window. He still didn't recognize anything. There wasn't anything; just fields that rose and fell as far as he could see. It was a full moon out and he could see a house in the distance. There were horses that where tied up in a stable and some chickens were strutting about. _

_The door suddenly opened and Eugene spun on his heels. He saw a woman with dark hair pinned up carrying a tray of what smelled like food. The woman paused staring at a very frightened boy. He didn't move and he didn't say a word. Eugene just stood there pushed up against the window with a frightened look upon his face, as if he had just seen a ghost, but a ghost that seemed slightly familiar._

"_Gabriel?"_

_Eugene had not heard that name for as long as he could remember, and the fact that someone he didn't know was using it scared him even more. He started to tremble. The woman set the tray aside and slowly walked up to the frightened boy. _

"_Gabriel, it's me, Aunt Claudia. Don't you remember?"_

_Eugene had never heard of an Aunt Claudia, at least not anyone that he could remember. She held out her hand and he flinched at her movement. _

"_It's alright child, I'm not going hurt you." _

_She tried to reach out to him, but he only screamed and ran around her. He tried to get to the door but was abruptly stopped by a tall man dressed in white with a hood. He knew it was the figure that took him and when he tried to run he was stopped once again. _

"_Gabriel, GABRIEL! It's me." He took off his hood to reveal his face, but that did nothing to calm Eugene down. He grabbed Eugene by his shoulders. "GABRIEL,…guardarmi (look at me)." Eugene stopped struggling and looked into the man's eyes. They seemed so familiar. "It's me…it's Papa." Eugene's jaw dropped. It was him! It was his father who he had not seen since he was three. His father was finally here! All the memories started flooding back, his mother waking him up, him running to the river and…being left behind. Eugene's eyes narrowed and darkened as he remembered his father's broken promise to him. He gritted his teeth and grunted as he pushed his father out of the way. Eugene took off running as fast as he could. He ran down the steps and out the door. He didn't know where he was going to run, but he didn't care. He wiped the tears from his eyes and ran. He heard his father calling after him but he didn't stop. Eugene looked behind him and saw his father gaining on him. He tried to pick up his pace but stumbled over his own feet and collapsed to the ground in a heap. _

_Ezio ran to his sobbing boy and scooped him up. He held him tight not wanting to let go. "Gabriel, it's all right, I'm right here." _

"_Why papa!" Eugene sobbed. "Why didn't you find meheeee, you promised…you promised you w-would find me!" _

_Ezio stared into his son's teary eyes with a heavy heart. He didn't know what to say. All these years, Ezio had been searching for his son. All this time his boy had been counting on him. He had no idea that his son remembered those words. He was so little, so young. Ezio's breath caught in his chest as he felt his heart drop. He held his son tight trying to sooth him._

"_Gabriel, I am so sorry. I'm so sorry my son, I'm so sorry." Ezio held on to him, hugging him close to his chest, vowing to never let his son go again. He rocked back and forth on his knees as Eugene continued to sob. He only wished his wife Rosa were still alive to see their little boy again. _

_It was slow at first, but Eugene got used to his name again and finally got reacquainted with his family. He learned that his mother had died that night in the fire, and that Ezio had been wounded that night and was unable to go after him. Had it not been for his Uncle Leonardo and his extensive medical knowledge, his father would not be alive today. By the time Ezio was well again, Eugene had been long gone._

_For fear that something might happen again, Eugene was not allowed to leave the premises. Eugene spent his time training to be an Assassin and learning the history of his heritage. However, his Uncle Leonardo thought he should have a well-balanced education and not just all fighting and learning how to kill people. Over the years he learned not only how to be an Assassin, but Eugene also learned about science, and the arts. He learned math, and history, and he already knew how to read, and write from Miss Anabel teaching him. His favorite activities to do with Uncle Leo were playing the piano and their daily chess games. His Aunt Claudia taught him how to cook and mend his own clothes if need be. His father and the rest of the Assassin's that took refuge there taught him everything he needed to know about how to become an Assassin and how to become a leader. _

_At fifteen he was finally allowed to leave the premises, but not without his father. Ezio could tell that constantly being trapped was getting to him. One day Ezio decided to surprise Eugene and take him to the marina. He remembered that when Eugene was little, he had a fascination with ships and boats. Ezio used to take him the marina all the time to watch the ships dock in and out. Ezio had bought an old broken down ship and gave it to Eugene as a present. It was their project together. They worked on it for months. He learned all there was to a ship; except how to sail it. Well, Ezio walked him through the steps but he never actually got to go and sail his ship that he worked so hard on. _

"_Dad, seriously you gave me a ship to just let sit there and have me stare at?" Ezio sighed._

"_Gabriel we have been over this."_

"_But Dad come on, I need to get out of here please. Even for just a little while."_

"_Gabriel it is too dangerous you know that."_

"_For me or for you?" Ezio eyed his son. "Dad no one even knows I exist, I mean hell some of the guys here don't even know I am your son. They think I am just some kid who wandered in here and became an Assassin. I don't know how much more air tight you wasn't this secret to be. I am sixteen. I am not a child anymore."_

"_Gabriel you go out there and they find out who you are you put everything we have worked so hard for at risk." _

"_What? What have we worked for? Tell me what in the hell did we work for?" Ezio looked at his son scornfully. "I wish you would have just left me." Ezio shot a look at Eugene. "At least by now I know I would eventually have been able to leave. I mean orphans usually get up the nerve to run at the age of fourteen or fifteen…" Ezio got in Eugene's face._

"_I did NOTHING but search for you." He hissed "I am not going to throw that all away just because you want joy ride out to town. You have no idea what I did to try to find you."_

"_Could have fooled me." Eugene scoffed._

_Eugene received a hard slap in the face from Ezio. Up until now, Eugene had never been physically reprimanded by his father, not once. This only fueled the fire. He reverted back to when he was in the orphanage and needed to defend himself. He punched Ezio square in the jaw. His eyes went dark and they burned with fury. They both glared at each other for a moment, and then it was all over. They went after each other like two tigers going after the same carcass. One would get on top of the other and the other would throw him to the other side of the room. They fought for a good while, until Ezio saw his opening and slammed Eugene up against the wall. Eugene, exhausted, stopped struggling. _

"_I may be your father and twice your age, but I can still whip your ass if you ever cross me again." Ezio snarled "I fought with everything I had to find you. You have no idea the hell I went through to find you. Don't you DARE try to throw something like that in my face again. I am your father, you will do as I say or you can walk out that door and don't even think about coming back, because I do not want to find out that you destroyed everything I worked for. Is that clear?" Eugene didn't answer. "I asked you a question, boy."_

_Through gritted teeth, he answered. "Yes, sir." _

"_Good." _

_Ezio let Eugene go and walked out of the room. Eugene slid down the wall feeling shattered both physically and mentally. He still somewhat resented his father for leaving him. He was angry and hurt, and he went through so much pain at the orphanage. Living there was like waking up to a nightmare every day. He still had nightmares about that place. He dreamt that one day he would wake up and he would be back at the orphanage. He would dream about Madam Agatha beating him over and over again. He would dream that he would be pushed into that dark damp cellar and fall into dark pit and never see the light of day again. It terrified him. The day Miss Anabel died is when he had lost all hope of ever being found, of ever finding anyone that would truly love and care for him. Eugene was in a deep dark place and he was still trying to claw his way out. _

_At eighteen Eugene was finally inducted into the Brotherhood of Assassins. As a gift from his father he was finally allowed out, on his own. _

"_I realize that I can't keep you here forever, Son. I know it is wrong of me. I know you are a man now, and you have to be out on your own. I only hope that you take the wisdom I shared with you and apply it."_

_Eugene smiled. "I will."_

"_If ever you want to come back to Vinezia, you will always have a place here."_

"_Thanks, Dad" It was breaking Ezio's heart to let his son go, but he knew he had to. Though Eugene never showed it, he secretly didn't want to leave now. _

_Eugene looked back at his ship. After working on it for four years, she was finally at her best to set sail. He readied himself at the helm. He raised his hood up over his head and gave the command to his crew to ready the sails. Ezio watched as his son sail away into the horizon with a heavy heart, but glad at the same time. He didn't know when he would see his son again, but Ezio knew his son would make him proud. _


	9. Chapter 9

So sorry for the delay, I have been slacking immensely. Also my internet connection has been really crappy. So, to make up for my lack of updates, I present you two chapters this week. I have been feeling a bit self-conscious with these lately. I just don't think they are all that great. Hopefully y'all will like them.

* * *

Chapter 9

Rapunzel sat and listened teary eyed as Eugene finished telling his story. She didn't know what to think. She was heartbroken, but finally so relieved at the same time. She had no idea the kind of pain and torcher Eugene had gone through. His pain was definitely worse than hers she thought.

"I am so sorry Eugene. I had no idea."

"Eh, most people don't."

"I realize now you had it worse and-"

"Rapunzel I didn't tell you this because…I wanted to prove…" He stopped to collect his thoughts. "Rapunzel, this is not a competition. This is not about comparing bad up-bringings. I told you this so that you can better understand why it is I did what I did. I told you this so you understand that, had I told you earlier, we might be facing worse circumstances than we are now. At least this way, I can say something about my past and no one is going to hear it who shouldn't. I want you to know I never meant to hurt you. I am sorry that I did, but that was not my intention."

Rapunzel thought about what he said. She did understand, it was all so clear now, she wished she just knew about sooner. She went back to the chess game she and Eugene started.

"So what did you do when you left, where did you go?"

"Oh I went all over the world. Germany, France, Spain, Ireland, Scotland, England, Switzerland, and plenty of places I don't know how to pronounce." Rapunzel lightly laughed. "But I did a lot of missions that my father sent me on. And it wasn't too long before I met you that I wanted out. I was tired of following somebody and then killing them and then be on the run again. So I told my dad and he couldn't blame me completely. When my mom was pregnant with me they both got out and that is why it was so crucial for no one to know who we were because if they had, the Templars would have come after us.

"Your mother was an Assassin too?"

"Mmm-hmm. So when I met you I was doing a quick under cover job that ultimately was a dead end anyways."

"You mean when you were steeling my crown?"

"Yeah, it was supposedly going to lead me to some big Templar leader, but no. Later I found out it was just a wild goose chase. I wasn't going to keep it forever. I was eventually going to give it back."

"So, why did you change your name again to Flynn Rider?"

"In all honesty, it's just really difficult to pick up girls with the name Eugene Fitzherbert, not gonna lie. They kinda just look at you like 'oh, you're cute.' But with a name Flynn Rider, man, it was game on." He said with light hearted cockiness.

Rapunzel rolled her eyes. She looked down at the board. She didn't realize how good Eugene was at chess, certainly a lot better than Pascal. She kind of liked the challenge.

"So this Uncle Leonardo…"

"Oh, yeah, well he isn't technically my uncle. He was a friend of my dad's way back when and he has just been around ever since."

"And your Aunt Claudia?"

"She is my dad's younger sister. It's the only family he has left." Rapunzel tilted her head in curiosity. "When my dad was nineteen, his family was accused of being conspirators against…someone important in Florence and he watched his father, his older brother, and is eight year old brother be hanged on false pretenses. So he got his mother and his sister out of Florence, met up with his uncle, Uncle Mario, and learned about being an Assassin. The thing was my grandfather was an Assassin but my dad didn't know. His cover job was working at a bank. My dad had dedicated ten years of his life to finding the man who was responsible for his family's death."

Rapunzel was heartbroken at how much pain a family could go through. It seemed like nothing but sorrow followed Eugene's family, and it was still following them. She made another move taking Eugene's rook. He countered with swiping her knight. She dropped her shoulders wondering how she could have missed that. She looked up at Eugene who was smiling at her.

"Your move, Blondie."

She moved her queen where she though it was safe, but in two moves it was taken. Eugene wasn't just good at chess, he was amazing. They continued their game while Rapunzel inquired more about his life.

"So, you're Italian."

"Uh-huh."

"How come you don't sound like your father?"

Eugene laughed. "I used to, but when you have to hide your identity and blend in no matter where you are going, you have to learn to hide where you are from. My accent was part of who I was and I needed to get rid of it. It took a really long time though."

"Did you learn Italian?"

"Italian is actually my first language, then English, then Spanish, then German, and enough French to get me in and barely out of trouble." Rapunzel laughed. "I think I would like to learn Russian next, but that is one of the most difficult languages to learn so I am told."

"And you learned all that by traveling a lot." Eugene nodded.

"Of course it does help that my crew for my ship were all from different parts of the world. So they helped speed up the process of my learning."

Eugene put Rapunzel in check. She had never been in check before. In four more moves it was over.

"Check Mate."

Rapunzel looked at the board in disbelief. She played a lot of other people at the kingdom. She even played her father a few times. She had always won. She was unbeatable, but Eugene cleaned the board with her. Eugene chuckled.

"Chess is nothing but the game of war. You have your front men, which are the pawns, and you have the high ranking pieces in the second row protecting the king and queen. You can't just look at the most convenient move at the time to save one piece. Sometimes you have to make sacrifices and think in moves a head in order to win the overall game. No war is won without a sacrifice…and no chess game is won without losing a few pieces. If you have the element of surprise in your hands, you can win the war, or in this case, a chess game."

Rapunzel listened carefully to his words of wisdom. He never ceased to amaze her in what he knew.

"Rapunzel, how would you feel if I trained you how to fight?"

"What do you mean, like what you do, kill people?"

"Well, that's a blunt way of putting it, but I guess when all is said and done, yeah."

"You want me to be an Assassin."

"That I am leaving up to you, I just want you to know how to defend yourself. If the time ever comes where something happens and I can't be there to protect you, I need to know you can get yourself out. I don't know what this Ivan guy is up to and…I am afraid to know what he might do to you if you can't defend yourself."

"And if I don't want to?" Eugene shrugged his shoulders.

"I…I guess that's you decision, but I think both of us know that even you would feel better about knowing how to defend yourself."

"I think I can do pretty well for myself. I have gotten you out of trouble before." Rapunzel had a bit of cockiness in her voice.

"Rapunzel, this isn't the pub thugs, or the guards back at the palace coming after us. These are people who are literally trying to take over the world and they will take down anyone and anything that stands in their way by any means necessary. You have no idea what they are capable of."

"Stop trying to tell me what I don't know, Eugene." Her voice rose slightly.

Eugene ran his hand through his hair I frustration and sighed. "This isn't about you being naïve, Rapunzel!" He paused for a moment to try and keep his temper in check. "Believe it or not there are some things you cannot experience by reading a book. Ok, I don't even know everything that these guys can do. Templars have been around for centuries and they have done some pretty despicable things. Hell, if I even knew half of what my father knows about them I…. Look, all I want is to know that if and when the time comes, you can handle yourself. It's gonna take a little more than a few whacks to the head with a frying pan to stop these guys."

He gave her a crooked smile to try and lighten the mood. But Rapunzel didn't smile. She only continued to stare off into the corner.

"I didn't ask for any of this."

"I didn't either, but this is what we are dealt and this is what we have to play."

"I need some time to think."

"Rapunzel…we don't have time. It's either you learn from us, or I find you very, very dark hole to hide you in. And I can't promise when I will let you out. I don't mean that in a threatening way, I just don't know long this is going to be. I was left very specific instructions to keep you completely out of harm's way otherwise I...will be dismembered and spread all over the island." Rapunzel looked at him sideways. "Look, forget the fact that I love you very much and want to keep you safe, butpersonally_, _Iwould like to stay in one piece. I have had all I can take with sharp pointy objects putting holes in me."

Regardless of how morbid the joke was, Rapunzel couldn't help but chuckle awkwardly at his twisted humor. But that was Eugene's intent. He missed seeing her smile and hearing her laugh. Through the years together, they never had a true fight, and this would be their first. Most couple's first big argument usually involves taking the relationship to the next level, or when the proper time to start a family is. Theirs involved life and death. This would certainly be a story to tell the grandkids one day.

Eugene wished so badly that he could hold her and make everything go back to the way it was. Rapunzel's cute innocence would be tainted forever. He knew she would never be the same. But, unfortunately, he doesn't have a choice; he can't keep her in the dark forever. Sooner or later that innocence was going to disappear. That was one of his favorite attributes about her. He loved that he could show her something new and watch her light up as she found fascination with even the smallest of wonders. Never had he ever found that with any other woman. The women that he had experience with were all very well-seasoned in the ways of the world. It was refreshing to be with someone who had a completely different outlook on things. Rapunzel being trapped was almost bitter sweet. He had the joy of being able to show her knew things, and experience a lot of "firsts" with her, but he had to face that the reason she is the way she is, is because she was abused and misled her entire life. Now he was going to have to open her eyes and make her see the world for how it really is. Gothel didn't have it all wrong. She had it half right. The world was cruel, and dark, and selfish. There was a side to the world that wanted to crush every bit of sunlight out of it. And unfortunately Eugene would have to show her that side. A side he would never wish to show anyone, no matter how "well-seasoned" they are. But there was no way that life would allow him to show her only the joys of life. With every action comes an equal and opposite reaction, and showing Rapunzel the ugly side to life was the equal and opposite reaction to freeing her from her prison.

"So what do you want to do?" Eugene asked.

Rapunzel didn't like the thought that she was going to learn how to kill someone. She couldn't even dream of taking anyone's life. She wasn't sure if she had it in her even for self-defense. She had seen death before, and she didn't want to be any part of it. Being locked away again, though, wasn't much of an alternative either. It was a "kill or be killed" type world and she needed to survive. Unlike Gothel, Eugene was giving her the tools to survive instead of telling her that she wouldn't have a snowball's chance. He was also asking her instead of telling her. That was something she wasn't used to. She wasn't used to having a choice. Even though it wasn't much of a choice, it was better than the latter.

She looked up at Eugene who was patiently waiting for her answer. And with a sigh she answered, "When do we start?"

* * *

"James…" The queen mumbled as she rolled her head from side to side trying to wake up from a dream. "James….where are…James…"

Doctor Menken heard Elizabeth's quiet protests and ran to her bedside.

"Elizabeth? Can you hear me?"

"…Ja.." Her eyes slowly fluttered open. Once her vision cleared she looked up at Doctor Menken with the most confused expression. "What's going on?"

"Elizabeth, what is the last thing you remember?"

"Tea. I was having tea with…Carissa Romanov and Captain James."

"And then?"

"I really don't remember. She was going to tell me where I can find my daughter, but I don't remember anything after that. Then I had the most peculiar dream. I felt like I couldn't move, and James…James was fighting something. I don't know what it was and then I remember floating it was very odd. Why am I here, why are you here, where is James? What is going on?"

"Elizabeth please you need to stay calm and rest."

"No, please tell me what is going on? Do they know where Rapunzel and Eugene are?"

Doctor Menken didn't respond. He just looked at her with a heavy heart. He turned to one of his nurses to go wake the captain and bring him in. Moments later James came barreling through the door still wiping the sleep from his eyes.

"Elizabeth!"

"James!"

"I'll leave you two alone." Doctor Menken signaled to his nurses to follow him out of the room.

"James, what's going on?" She noticed the bandage around his upper arm. Her hand slowly came up and softly rubbed it with her thumb. With a concerned looked she asked, "What happened?"

James gently took her hand into his own. "It's nothing, just a scratch." He gave her a slight smile to reassure her.

"James, I had a dream you were in a fight, and I tried to call for you but I couldn't and then I felt myself floating away and I couldn't see you…"

"Shhh."

"…I was so worried."

"It's alright now, my love. I'm here. Everything is going to be fine." He brought Elizabeth up to hold her, and he held tight. He stroked her hair and he felt her relax in his arms.

"What is going on with my daughter? Has anyone found her?" Elizabeth leaned back and looked up at James.

He sighed and said, "Alright, I can't hold this from you any longer, you have a right to know."

* * *

"We will arrive in Venice by tomorrow evening, Sir." Gregor said to Ivan.

"Good, and how long before we get to their exact location?"

"Sir, we need to lay low for a while." Ivan gave Gregor a skeptical glance.

"And why would that be?"

"They will be on their guard; they will be expecting us. If we want to be successful, we have to catch them off their guard."

Ivan sighed with annoyance. "Gregor, I have a feeling you are stalling. Now why would that be?"

Gregor started getting nervous, but kept his composure on the outside. "Do you want to catch the Assassins or not? If we come in too quickly they will be ready for us and they will see us coming from a mile away. We wait it out for a while and their guard will lower. That will be the time to strike."

"And just how long do you propose we "sit and wait?"

"…Two weeks at the most. It may not take that long for them to get comfortable. Carissa Romanov will be monitoring them. She is the best when it comes to espionage, she will not fail. You have my word. "

Ivan raised his eye brow. "And you said he has the apple?"

"Yes, he does. He had it in his possession before he left England."

"Alright. This is your last chance. You screw this up and you are going to wish the Assassins had killed you first. Do I make myself clear?"

"Unmistakably, Sir."

Without another word Sir Gregor went down below inside the ship to his room. There waiting for him was Carissa.

"What did you tell him?"

"I told him we need to wait to strike. That should buy us sometime to find them. Once we dock, I need you to go out and try to find them. You have two weeks at the most to find them. Do not do anything without consulting me first. All I want you to do is follow them back to where they are hiding and report back to me. Understood?"

"Yes."

"Good, now where were we?"

They locked lips in a passionate kiss. He held her close as Gregor lowered Carissa onto the bed. The ship rocked them as she moaned his name and he continued to assault her lips and down to her neck.

* * *

Eugene wasted no time in Rapunzel's training. She needed to learn fast and time was quickly running out. It was only a matter of time before Ivan and his men found out where they were. They needed to be prepared for when they came. It had been a week since Eugene and Rapunzel had arrived in Venice and Eugene kept Rapunzel busy with her training the whole week. Training Rapunzel doubled as Eugene's own training as well. It refreshed him on what he hadn't done in a while. In addition it helped build his strength back up to where it was. Luckily, Rapunzel was a lot smarter than the average Coronian soldier and she was stronger than she looked so she caught on very quickly. She knew how to strategize her moves when fighting, and she didn't weigh much so she was fast; two qualities that were most definitely in her favor. But Ivan was extremely smart and regardless of his body type, he could wield a sword like no other. Some of the best Assassin's lost their lives to his blade. Eugene was going to have the pray on her never having to face an encounter with him.

Eugene was able to fix Rapunzel up with her own armor. She had her own bracers each with a hidden weapon; one had a hidden blade and the other was a hidden pistol. With a flick of her wrist and proper aim, she could fire one shot. She had he own sword and short sword, a set of throwing knives, a pair of sais, extra bullets, and poison darts.

"All that is left is to give you something a little more suitable to move around in. That dress is not gonna cut it."

She looked down and swayed her dress back and forth. "Well what am I supposed to wear?"

Eugene thought for a moment. "Here, come with me."

Eugene took Rapunzel by the hand and led her back up stairs to the main house. He led her upstairs to a room and knocked on the door.

"Gabriel, how are you?"

An older woman about Rapunzel's height appeared. She had dark brown hair in a low loose bun. She had a long red and gold dress. She looked to be about in her early forties

Hi, Aunt Claudia, I need you to do me a favor." He brought Rapunzel in front of him and put his hand on her shoulders. "I need you to fix her up with something a little better suited for running around in."

"Sì, I am sure I can come up with something." She took Rapunzel by the hand. "Come dear; let me see what I have for you."

Rapunzel was a bit reluctant being left with a woman she didn't know, but Eugene just gave a small wave and a crooked smile reassuring her everything will be fine.

Eugene turned on his heels and headed down for the next room. There was someone he had been neglecting for the past week, and he thought he should probably check up on him. He walked up to the door and knocked.

"Lucas, you still alive in there?"

The door opened but it was not Lucas he was looking at. A young woman walked out with mischievous smile on her face. A very happy Lucas came following out. As the young woman walked down the hall Lucas continued to stare in her direction with eyes moving downward as she walked. Then he sheepishly looked to Eugene. Eugene just shook his head.

"I don't wanna know."

"What you lock a guy in a place like this and really expect nothing to happen?"

"Didn't I just say I don't wanna know? That means shut your mouth. I was coming up here to see how you were doing, but clearly you are doing just fine."

"Actually, nothing really happened. All I could do was look, but no touching…her anyways."

"Ahhhh stop! That's between you, her, and those four walls, that's it! I'm gonna go now; you are doing just fine."

"You wanna come in?"

"Not really, no." Lucas rolled his eyes.

"I actually wanted to know when I was going to start training. I have been cooped up here for days, and it is killing me."

"I told you weren't going to do anything." Lucas sighed.

"Why not, why won't you let me train?"

"Because I let you train, then you are gonna want to come out and "help" and you will only get in the way." Lucas lowered his head in defeat. Eugene knew that look all too well. Eugene sighed. "Why do want to be a part of this so bad. Do you have any idea what we are fighting for?"

"Not really, but I know it's for something good." Eugene tilted his head at him in question. "Look…my father supposedly died of stroke, but I don't believe so."

"What do you mean?"

"My father was…a part of something, I am not sure what but one night I heard him arguing with some men. I don't know what they were arguing about; I was too young to understand. What I do know is that he died the very next night."

"So you think he was murdered?"

"I know he was, but no one would listen to me."

"And you think that getting into someone else's fight is going to make you feel better about your father alleged murder."

"He WAS murdered, and no, but I do think he was an Assassin."

"Why do you think that?"

"Because he had that symbol on his ring finger." He pointed to Eugene's emblem on his waist. "I saw it there when I found him."

"You were the one that found him when he died?" Lucas slowly nodded his head.

Eugene knew what it was like to not have a father. Even though his father eventually found him again, it still didn't hurt any less when he lost his. Lucas continued to pull at Eugene's heart strings. Damn him and his soft spot for helpless kids. Eugene bit his lip contemplating his options. It would be nice to have one more person on their side. And who knows, he might become really useful later on.

"Alright, follow me." Eugene led Lucas down the hall, down the steps and to the study. Before he took another step he turned to Lucas with a serious look. "You tell anyone else about this, and I will personally kill you myself, got it?"

Lucas sort of chuckled but immediately stopped when Eugene was not joining in the "joke."

"Oh you're serious?"

"As a heart attack."

"Ok, I won't, you have my word."

Eugene activated the secret entrance. Lucas watched in amazement as the fireplace revealed an entrance. They walked through and Lucas' amazement only grew. He walked down the long steps and gaped at how large the place was. He heard metal on metal clanking. He turned his head and saw two Assassins training. Eugene led him to the fighting ring. Eugene noticed the slight smile on his face and couldn't help but smile himself.

"Evening, Gents."

"Master Gabriel! How are you?"

"I'm doin' alright. I have a new recruit for you." One of the men recognized him from the ship and glared at him. "I want you to train him." A smile crept up on Eugene's face. "Train him good." The others got his message and returned the smile as they unsheathed their weapons.

"With pleasure, Master Gabriel."

Eugene slapped Lucas on the back. "Have fun."

"Wait you are just going to leave me with them?"

"You said you wanted to train, now's your chance."

Eugene responded as he walked backwards. He turned back around leaving Lucas. He could start to hear his pleas of protest and he laughed to himself.

Eugene went back upstairs. He wanted to check on Rapunzel. He wanted to see what his aunt had come up with for her. He knocked on the door and waited for a response.

"Solo aspettare il momento, per favore (Wait just one moment, please)."

Eugene waited patiently. The door finally opened. Out walked Rapunzel with a white hood over her head. Her garb was white with emerald green trim. Her sleeves where long and very fitted, along with the rest of her garb. She had a green sash around her waist with the assassin symbol on the front; similar to Eugene's but it was smaller. Her lapel curved up around her neck and was green on the inside with a V neck line. The panels in the front and back only came down to her thighs and had a green trim around the edges. She had two brown leather belts; one to hold her weapons, and the other to hold various pouches. She had light cream pants and dark brown boots that laced up to her calf. Rapunzel lowered her hood to see Eugene's jaw drop. She shyly smiled at him.

"What are you staring at?"

"…I just…um…I..I" He shook his head to try and get his wits.

"I think he approves, don't you?" Claudia said behind Rapunzel. Rapunzel giggled.

"Do you like it?"

"Ya know this can be very distracting." Rapunzel scrunched her nose and light slapped him on the arm. He smiled at her. "As much as I would like to sit here and marvel, you should probably get some rest. I've got something planned for tomorrow and someone you should meet."

"What are we doing?"

"Go get some rest."

Rapunzel narrowed her eyes at him. He was being secretive again. But she was going to find out tomorrow so she couldn't be too upset at him. Maybe he was planning a surprise for her. She wasn't sure, but she decided to comply and headed toward her room. She walked past him down the hall. Eugene watched as her hips made the back panels of her garb sway back and forth. He was abruptly interrupted with another slap to the arm; this time slightly harder by Aunt Claudia.

"Ow, what was that for?"

She shook her head at him. "You are just like your father."

"Whatever." Eugene rolled his eyes at her. She gave him a scornful look.

"Come in. I want to talk to you." Eugene walked in and he took a seat on a chair next to her desk. Claudia pulled a chair in front and sat down. She looked into his eyes before saying anything, like she was searching for something. "How are you doing?"

Eugene shrugged his shoulders. "Good, I guess."

She raised an eyebrow at him. "Gabriel, I haven't seen you in how many years and that is all you are going to tell me?"

"Well, it's been stressful. I've been through a lot."

"I heard. Are you completely healed now?"

"For the most part. Still hurts every now and then, nothing I can't handle though."

"How are you getting along with your father?" He shrugged his shoulders again.

"As good as it's ever gonna get, I guess."

"You are still upset aren't you?" Eugene didn't answer. He looked down at his hands. "Gabriel, you have to forgive him."

"I know."

"You know, but you are not going to, are you?"

"It's not that easy."

"Gabriel he didn't abandon you on purpose."

"He left me for five years. Do have any idea the type of hell I went through, praying and wishing he would come get me. I was beaten, starved, mentally and emotionally scarred, and thrown down that cellar, I don't know how many times. Night after night I would watch out my window praying he would find me and he never came."

"I understand you are upset-"

"Upset is a bit of an understatement."

"-But you need to forgive him not just for his sake, but for yours. Forgiveness is not for the other person, it is for you. That is the only way you will be able to get past it."

"I can't." He looked up at Claudia, eyes lightly misted over. She scooted her chair forward and held Eugene's hands.

"Sweetheart, I want to explain something to you. When your father lost you and your mother, he put his entire life on hold to find you. He remembers telling you that he would always find you, he remembers promising that. When he told me what he promised you he was in tears. He was not able to protect our father or brothers for being wrongfully accused and executed. He couldn't lose you well. So instead of going after the men that came and killed your mother and nearly him the way he did when our father and brothers died, he went out and looked for you. That was all he did, for five years straight. When everyone else gave up thinking you were either long gone, or even possibly dead, your father sent out every single assassin he could get ahold of to search for you. That was his main mission. He didn't do any side job, there was no mission that happened to lead to you. It was all about finding you, and that was it. So many nights your father would break down because he knew he was breaking his promise to you. I know because I was there to pick up the pieces. Your father can be very cold and callous on the outside, but on the inside he is only thinking of you. Your father loves you very much, Gabriel. He still blames himself for losing you and your mother. Still to this day he asks himself what he could have done differently, and every day I have to remind him that he did all he could. I don't think he will fully get over it until he hears it from you. But you need to first forgive him for yourself, before you can forgive him for him."

Eugene suddenly felt like one hundred pounds was just lifted off his shoulders. All his doubts, all misguided thoughts suddenly disappeared. He hadn't realized what his father had done all those years. He was so young he just didn't understand why his father never came for him. Over the years that hurt and anger he felt never truly went away because they had never spoken about it. Anytime anyone would try to get close Eugene would just clam up and not talk about it. So it just sat there and festered inside. He finally realized that not only was he causing his own grief, but he was causing his father grief by continuing to blame him.

"He never told me why."

"I know, I told you he is callous on the outside. He is good at talking to women, not to the ones he loves and cares about. And you, young man, are your father's son to the letter." Eugene chuckled a little. For the first time in his life, hearing that didn't seem so bad. "So, are you still angry?"

"Yes…but for a different reason."

"Oh, and what reason is that?"

"I just don't understand why he didn't tell me all of this. He wanted me to forgive him but he never explained to me what had happened. I heard he got hurt that night, but that was it. He never told me why he didn't come for me for five years. I thought I was being punished for something."

"Gabriel, I told you he is not very good at talking to the ones he loves. He has tried a few times, but you constantly shut him out. You have to let him in in order for him to be able to talk to you. From what I hear, your father is not the only person you shut out."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I think you and I both know who we are talking about." Eugene sighed and got up to face the window. "Gabriel, this is what I am talking about. As soon as someone brings up something slightly uncomfortable you clam up and walk away."

"I already told her the truth; about me, our family-"

"Telling her your secret identity is not enough. If you are going to marry that girl you have to let her in. Otherwise she will find someone who will. And I know that is not what you want. I saw the way you looked at her, and it wasn't a lustful way. You love her." He loved her more than anyone could ever understand. But he wasn't ever good at showing it. "I think you need to talk to her. But I think you should have a long overdue conversation with you father first. He is not going to be around forever, and you may regret it if you don't do this now."

Eugene squeezed his eyes shut. "Do I have to?"

"Yes, you do. Or I will beat you." Eugene chuckled. "Go, he should be in his room by now."

Eugene turned as Claudia pulled him in for a hug. He towered over his aunt as he embraced her.

"I'll go talk to him."

"Tonight."

Eugene rolled his eyes. "Yes, tonight."

Claudia brought his head down and kissed him on the forehead before he left.

Eugene walked down the hall to his father's room. He lifted his fist, but before he could knock the door flung open and he stood face to face with his father.

"Gabriel, what are you doing here?" His tone was light.

"Uh…" Eugene faltered as he searched for what he wanted to say.

"Yes?"

He looked down the hall back to where Aunt Claudia's room was. He looked back right into his father's eyes.

"I need to talk to you." Ezio nodded his head

"Come in." Eugene walked in and Ezio shut the door. He took a seat on the edge of Ezio's bed. He had rehearsed this speech so many times in his head, but why he couldn't think of a single thing to say perplexed him to no end. "So, what do you need to talk to me about?"

"Honestly I don't know." Ezio's expression was blank. He knew what Eugene had to say was something important, so he wasn't going to interrupt him or rush him. Ezio had a feeling of what Eugene needed to say so he was just going to let him talk. "I hated you for a really long time. I resented you, and…I think to some extent I still somewhat do, and…deep down I don't think I really know why. I tell myself it's because you left me…stranded for five years. But, I don't know if that is really it anymore. Is this making any sense to you?"

Ezio smiled. "Gabriel, did I ever tell you that I was very angry with my father after he died?"

Eugene shook his head in confusion. "No."

"Even though I knew for a fact that my father's death was not his fault, even though I knew, he was falsely accused, I was still angry at him. I hated him for many, many years."

"Why?"

"Because I was left behind. For so long I blamed him for how my life turned out. In reality, I was just afraid."

"Afraid of what?"

"Failing him. I spent the better part of ten years finding the ones responsible for my family's death. I was so afraid that I wouldn't be able to avenge my father and I would be considered a failure. Of course that wasn't the only reason."

"What else?"

"He had never told me about the Assassin's. He never told me any of his life's work. I found out after he died. My Uncle Mario taught me all of that. I was angry because I thought that it should have been my father to teach me everything. But he was gone, and I felt like I had no one. Of course I did have your grandmother, and your Aunt Claudia, but…I was the one responsible. They were looking to me for answers. I had to be the one to run things. I felt like my father just left me with a mess to clean up and no one guiding me. What I didn't know was that my uncle, your Great Uncle Mario, was the one whom my father depended on to watch out for me if anything did happen. I wasn't looking at the fact that my father had been watching out for me all along. He made sure that I would be taken care of. I was just so lost in my own fear and pity and anger that I couldn't see that. It took many years for me to figure that out. Gabriel, I cannot change what happened all those years ago, and you have every right to feel angry. I did, but I never once forgot about you. I want you to know that. Trust me, I look back and I think about what I could have done differently. I look back at how I could have saved both you and your mother."

"I don't blame you for mom. I did…for a while…but…" Suddenly, something dawned on Eugene. A light suddenly come on in his mind as something that should have been so obvious to him before. "You…have always known were I was. Anytime I needed you, I have never needed to look for you."

Ezio smiled. "The day I found you, I made a vow to never ever lose track of the only family I have left."

"All this time, I never once gave it a second thought. I would just write you a note and I trusted that it would get to you. And you were always there. You kept your promise. How did I miss that?"

"You missed it the same way I did, Gabriel. You were angry, and probably afraid, and it was difficult to see. You did the exact same thing I did when my father died."

Eugene closed his eye and hung his head. How could he have been stupid he thought? He was so wound up in his own pity he couldn't see the truth. Now he felt even more stupid for being mad at Rapunzel. She was only doing the same thing, just different circumstances.

"You are angry at yourself now, aren't you?" Eugene slowly nodded his head. "You don't need to be. No one blames you for how you feel."

"It's not just that, Dad, it's…I got angry with Rapunzel and she was only doing that exact same thing I was. I mean I really yelled at her, Dad. I have never done that to her before. I don't know if she is over it or not. I feel like I just created a huge mess that didn't need to exist in the first place."

Ezio took a deep breath. He walked over and sat next to Eugene. "I know. But the only way you are going to get past it is if you talk to her. Gabriel, you love her don't you?"

"More than you'll know."

"And she loves you?"

"…I hope so."

"Then talk to her. And put a ring on that finger." He shoved Eugene's head over. Eugene lightly laughed. "Come on, you have a long day, and I am old. Let's get some rest."

"Remember those were your words not mine." Ezio retaliated by flipping Eugene off. Eugene headed towards to the door giggling. "Good night, Dad."

"Good night, Son."

* * *

AN: Idk, what do you think. I wanted there to be some tension between Eugene and his dad, but I don't know if I put that across very well. Hopefully this chapter doesn't just seem like a fill. Let me know what you think in the comment. Thanks for reading.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

"Ok, you remember what I told you?" Eugene asked.

"Hide in plain sight. Move with the crowds not against them and never stay in one spot after pickpocketing."

"Very good." Eugene lifted Rapunzel's hood to cover her face. "I won't be far, so if you get into trouble I be right there waiting for you. I promise I won't intervene until you give me the signal."

Rapunzel smiled haughtily. "Thank you."

Eugene rolled his eyes before he climbed up on top of one of the nearby roofs. He stayed low as he followed her.

Rapunzel was extremely nervous. She knew that getting caught could mean huge trouble, but she knew she could count on Eugene to be right there. Rapunzel made her way through the crowds. She swiped and pickpocketed everyone she passed by and no one was the wiser. She floated through the streets as if she were a ghost. Eugene was impressed and proud. He knew he taught her well. Rapunzel had swiped a large man's wallet. It didn't take long before the man noticed something didn't feel quite right. Eugene tensed up slightly. But before he could get too nervous, Rapunzel handled it like a pro. The man screamed and hollered that his wallet had been stolen. Rapunzel swiftly moved across the street and down an alley way. The large man spotted her, but before he could get close, she disappeared and was nowhere to be found. Eugene, for a moment, lost her, but found her sitting on a bench head down between two old men. He smiled to himself. Rapunzel waited patiently for the man to leave her sight before she got up again.

Rapunzel's next task was to follow, swipe, and disappear without getting caught. Eugene had a fellow assassin set this task up for her. She was to spot him, and follow him. She learned that she could easily find targets by listening in on conversations. She sat in a courtyard where she was told her target could be spotted. She focused her hearing on different conversations around her to find the one she was looking for. She had to move her location several times, but she finally found the one she was looking for. The man she was following was dressed just like a local. Had she not been paying attention eavesdropping as well as she had, she would have missed him.

Rapunzel waited until he was several yards away from her before she followed. She never lost sight of him. She slowly got up and casually started walking towards his direction. Every now and then he would stop and look behind him. Rapunzel would have to duck in a corner, or hide in a crowd of people so she wasn't seen. Once the man was satisfied that no one was following him he continued forward and Rapunzel would continue her hunt. She climbed up on the roof to get closer without being seen. Once he was in a dark alley, Rapunzel pounced on him, grabbed what she needed, and bolt up the side of the building as fast as she could. The man was left unconscious in the alley.

Eugene chuckled and shook his head.

"Rapunzel you're not supposed to nearly kill the guy. You're just supposed to swipe and go."

Rapunzle looked confused. "But I got it didn't I?"

"Well technically yes, but had you not have rendered him unconscious, he could have easily called you out and then you would be on the run from the guards. The guards here are not as friendly or as slow as ours. Next time, don't try to trap him, just get close enough like you did with the others grab what you need and go. That way no one gets hurt. What is rule number one?"

"Always stay your blade from the flesh of an innocent."

"That also includes knocking them out for no reason."

"…Sorry."

Eugene smiled. "It's ok. I think he'll be fine. His pride might be a little hurt, but he'll get over it." They looked down at the unconscious man from their perch. "I think we should fuck with him."

"Eugene!"

"What? I think it would be fun."

Rapunzel leaned in close. "What did you have in mind?" She asked quietly.

Eugene shrugged his shoulders. "We could…steal his clothes. Make him run naked through the street." Rapunzel covered her mouth as she giggle at the thought of some poor bastard running around aimlessly trying to hide his nudity from the public.

"No, that's too mean."

"I think it's hysterical."

"We could draw a mustache on his face."

"What are you twelve at a slumber party? C'mon let's just get him up." They started making their way down.

"You're no fun."

"No, I was fun. You took all the fun out of it by wanting to draw a mustache."

"Yeah, yeah." Rapunzel rolled her eyes at Eugene.

They quickly clambered down off the nearby building to wake their friend. Eugene took his foot and nudged the young man awake.

"Hey! Wake up." Eugene called out. The young man awoke groggily.

"Ugh…what happened?"

"You got your ass kicked by a girl, that's what happened." The young assassin looked confused.

"What?"

"C'mon get up."

Rapunzel and Eugene helped him to his feet and get his balance back. Eugene suddenly saw something out of the corner of his eye. He looked down to the entrance of the alley and he thought he saw someone he recognized. He slowly crept his way out of the alley. He looked ahead through the crowds of people and saw a woman. She stopped and turned. Eugene couldn't see her eyes, but he knew she was looking right at him. He didn't need to see her whole face to know exactly who it was. He ran back into the alley.

"We gotta go."

"What why?"

"No time, go…gogogo." They all three quickly climbed back up to the roof and stayed low. Rapunzel and the other assassin hid behind a chimney wall. Eugene slowly crept around above out of sight following the young woman that ran back to the alley that they quickly abandoned. She looked up and around for a few moments before accepting defeat and returning back on her way.

"We gotta get outta here."

"Where are we going?" Rapunzel asked.

"Somewhere safe. Besides I have someone you should meet. Follow me and stay close."

Eugene took off on the roof tops careful not to make too much noise and draw attention from the crowds below. They leapt from roof top to roof top running ahead at full speed. Had Rapunzel not trained with Eugene as much as she had, she wouldn't have been able to keep up. Now, she had no problem.

Though she knew she was in danger (even though she didn't know how much at the moment) Rapunzel couldn't help but feel a rush from all of this. She, Rapunzel soon to be Fitzherbert (or Auditore, she wasn't sure), was finally running free, and living dangerously. She got a little excited at the thought and nearly lost her footing. But quick reaction time brought her back and kept her going. She had no idea where they were running to, and she had no idea how long they were running for. But Rapunzel didn't care. She was having fun. She didn't feel helpless anymore. She didn't feel like the dainty princess everyone thought her out to be. She was the tough, rugged, Rapunzel that happened to be a princess. She knew how to fight, she knew how to blend in with her surroundings, and she could move.

Before she knew it, Eugene stopped and they were at their destination. On top of the one of the roofs, was a hidden roof access only accessible and known to assassins. He lifted it up and carefully lowered Rapunzel down. Eugene and the other young assassin followed right behind.

"Where are we? Rapunzel looked around at the small room.

"We are at my Uncle Leonardo Da Vinci's villa. The hatch is only for assassins. However if he hears the bells go off, that means that one of us are being chased, and he locks it. We would have to find a place to hide so the guards don't follow us down here until it is safe for him to open it back up. If they found out that he harbors assassins he would be thrown in jail and possibly hanged."

Rapunzel nodded.

They followed Eugene up stairs and down a narrow hall.

"Uncle Leo, you in here?" Eugene called. He noticed his painting room was open so he let himself in. "Hey Uncle Leo- WHOA!" Eugene was abruptly stopped by the sight of a naked man standing very proudly with his hands on his hips. Eugene quickly looked down and shielded his eyes and backed the other two behind him.

"Gabriel! It's so nice to see you!"

Eugene didn't look up to look at his Uncle. "Yeah, please tell me you're clothed."

"Sì." Leonardo turned to the naked man still standing there. "Salai, vai attendere per me nell'altra stanza (Salai, go wait for me in the other room)."

The man nodded, took his robe off the chair to cover himself, and left.

"You couldn't have put a note on the door, some sort of sign like a tie on the door knob; hell couldn't you have locked it? There's a reason why they put locks on doors."

"Well, that will teach you to come in unannounced, won't it?"

"You're the one that put in the roof access."

Leonardo just huffed knowing better than to get into an argument with his nephew. "It's nice to see you too, Gabriel."

Eugene smiled knowing he had won. "Hi. Uncle Leo, I want you to meet Rapunzel. Rapunzel is also a painter."

"Really?!" Leonardo's eyes grew wide with excitement. "Please take a look around and let me know if you see anything you like. My latest is an anatomy study. That's why my assistant Salai was bare. It is very difficult replicate the human body. I have discovered you can't just draw in the features, they are shaded in."

"Anatomy is something that I have always struggled with. I will have to remember that. Maybe you can give me some pointers later.

"It would be my pleasure, Rapunzel."

The door to Leonardo's bedroom opened and out came Ezio. Eugene raised an eyebrow in question.

"Gabriel what are you doing here?"

"…I could ask you the same thing." His eyes darted back and forth from his father to his uncle and back. "You do know rumors fly right?"

At first Ezio didn't understand. Then he abruptly caught on to what Eugene was saying

"Gabriel Eugene Auditore!" That had even caught the attention of Rapunzel. She turned from a painting she was studying, jaw dropped.

"Hey, I'm not judging; you do what you do. I'm just saying…"

"Sì, lo so cosa state "solo dicendo." (Yes I know what you are "just saying")."

Leonardo couldn't do anything but laugh. "He's not my type anyway."

"If you must know, I was looking at a mural he had just painted and it was in his bedroom."

"Hey no worries your secret is safe with me."

Ezio retorted with a slap to the back of Eugene's head. But it only made Eugene giggle.

"Anyhow, I actually wanted to come here and give you this." He handed Leonardo a rolled up scroll.

Leonardo unrolled it. "A codex page!"

"Yes, I deciphered most of it, but some I was unsure of and wanted to run it by you first. I read that if the third Piece of Eden was consumed by someone or something, it can be extracted. But I couldn't figure out how to do it."

"Yes, I see." Leondardo walked back and forth in his painting room mumbling to himself. Every now and then he would stop and write something on the codex page.

"By the way, I think Ivan and his men are here." Eugene mentioned to Ezio.

"Did you see him?"

"No, not exactly, but I did see someone, and they were definitely following us."

"Who was it?"

"Does the name Carissa Romanov ring a bell?"

Ezio thought for a moment. "Is she the one that married into the French royal family?"

"That would be the one."

"What is she doing here?"

"I don't know, but I swear she has a personal vendetta against me. I don't know why else she would be here, and I have a feeling she threw her lot in with them."

"She didn't follow you back here did she?"

"I wouldn't be here if she did."

"AH!" Leonardo shouted.

"What did you find?"

"Yes, we have to go to the vault."

"At the Vatican?"

"Yes. It says here that it can only be extracted by means of the vault."

"But Eugene cut my hair a long time ago. I don't have any more power." Rapunzel stopped looking at the paintings and joined into the conversation.

"Rapunzel what did you do to heal Gabriel the last time?" Ezio inquired.

"I don't know I," she though back to that day, "I was crying, but I already tried that the second time Eugene was hurt and it didn't work."

Leonardo took a sharp scalpel from his work bench and grabbed Eugene's hand.

"Ah, what are you doing?!" Leonardo cut a thin incision the width his hand. "Ow, what the…?!"

Rapunzel looked horrified.

"Cry."

"What?

"Cry into his hand and do what you did the last time."

Rapunzel felt a little embarrassed being put on the spot like that, but she did as she was told. It was difficult, but she managed to squeeze out a tear as she sung the incantation. The tear landed on Eugene's hand, and glowed gold leaving nothing behind. Eugene's hand was healed.

"That makes sense. Of course, it has to make physical contact. I don't think it made contact with you the last time." Rapunzel sighed.

"That…would have been really useful to know…about a few months ago." Eugene mused.

Rapunzel sighed in frustration. "I feel so stupid now."

"Don't worry yourself, Princess. There was no way for you to know." Ezio assured her.

Eugene turned to Leonardo. "The next time you want to cut into human flesh, use your own. I am not here to be your lab rat." Leo just shrugged and smiled.

"We should go." Ezio urged. "I want to make sure my men are ready. I don't want to wait for Ivan to strike."

As the four of them left, Salai reentered the room grinning as he disrobed once again.

* * *

Carissa walked into her spacious bedroom. She cursed herself for losing the assassins from her sight. She was so close to catching them. Had it not been for Eugene and his keen sight…'_Oh wait until I get my hands on you' _she thought. She should have known Eugene was an assassin. Something never rubbed her right about him. She never liked him from the start. It wasn't that he did anything in particular, but she just knew something was wrong with him. She was right, he was an assassin. It was almost instinct to her to want to kill all assassins; that was just the Templar way. Had she not have married into French royal family, she may have never known about the Templars and their ways. They promised her riches, and a life time of comfort. They just needed her to cooperate and marry into the royal family, and they would take care of the rest. Carissa came a long way from being a poor farmer's daughter in Russia. She hated everything about her life. She had no name, no money, and certainly no influence. Now that she was with the Templars, she had it all. She was important, and she had all the money she could ever want. All she had to do was keep her mouth shut when told, and do a few side jobs.

Carissa heard her door creek open and she spun around.

"It's just me."

"Oh, Gregor you scared me."

"Did you find them?"

She sighed. "I did, they are here, but I couldn't follow them. That Eugene, or Gabriel, or whatever his name is, saw me and disappeared. I'm sorry. But we are close. I will get him next time I know I will."

Gregor wore a grim expression. "That's the thing Carissa; there won't be a next time."

"What are you saying?"

Gregor slowly walked up to her and embraced her. "I'm sorry. I wish it could have been different between us." Before Carissa could ask or protest, Gregor reached for her head and snapped her neck killing her instantly. A tear slid down Gregor's cheek as Carissa crumpled to the floor with a thud.

* * *

Back at the brothel Ezio and Eugene were creating a plan to attack before Ivan gets the upper hand.

"My girls tell me Ivan and his men are staying at Palazzo Ducale. It is heavily guarded by armed guards both on ground and on the roof. They have archers posted everywhere." Claudia informed them.

"Gabriel, I am going to need you to take out those archers if we want to make any head way." Ezio said.

"Too easy."

"Now, the problem is getting inside without being detected. It is nearly impossible to get in without sounding off some sort of alarm to the guards."

"One of my girls said she spotted a ventilation access. The bad part is I don't think any of you can fit through it."

"I might be able to." Rapunzel added.

Eugene slowly turned to Rapunzel. "Rapunzel, no I am not letting you do that."

She raised an eye brow at him and crossed her arms. "I don't believe it is up to you. This is my choice and _I _will decide what I will and will not do. Is that understood?"

"You do understand what have to do right? You do realize that you do this and you are the one who is going to kill Ivan right? After that, there is no going back."

"I…I understand." She looked down ringing her hands out habit.

"Are you sure? Because once you are in there, you _cannot…_hesitate. You hesitate and you could get yourself killed, you could compromise all of us and we could lose everything." Eugene could stress enough how dangerous this really is and could be for her.

"Rapunzel, Gabriel is right. Do not do this unless you are absolutely, one hundred percent sure that you can do this." Ezio said.

Rapunzel lifted her head and she even straightened up. She held herself confidently. "I am ready. I need to do this…for my father."

Ezio nodded. He understood where she was coming from. "Alright, we need to be ready by nightfall. Stay to the roof tops as much as possible."

"HEY!" Lucas came running up to the group. "What about me?"

"Ugh, what about you, Lucas?" Eugene asked aggravated.

"Well how come she gets to help and I don't?"

"Because I said so that's why."

"No wait." Ezio interrupted. "We could use another set of eyes. I cannot have all my men out on this mission. I need some of my best to stay here to protect our den. Lucas would be much more useful with us than trying to defend our den if it gets attacked."

"So I can come?" Lucas became giddy.

"Lucas this isn't a game. This is real life and death we are dealing with."

Eugene couldn't believe his father was actually agreeing with this. When he was fifteen, he wasn't even allowed to leave the house let alone go on a mission.

"I can do it. I promise I won't let you down."

"You remember our deal right?"

"Yeah, I remember."

"Good, because it still stands. Don't fuck it up."

"Alright, everyone let's get some rest. We need to be at our best tonight."

Everyone dissipated to get some rest. Before Eugene and Ezio left, one of the other assassins came up to Eugene.

"I believe this note is for you Master Gabriel."

Eugene took it and unrolled it. "It's from James." As he read the note, Ezio could see Eugene's eyes go dark and his face turn red with rage. He started shaking with fury.

"What's wrong?" Eugene handed the note Ezio

_I thought you said Templars keep their fight in the dark. One of Ivan's men killed one of my soldiers, murdered his family burned down their farm._

"Gabriel-"

"I'm gonna kill him, I swear to God I am going to rip his throat out." Eugene clenched his teeth and his fists were balled up.

"Gabriel, I need you to stay calm." Eugene paced back and forth ready to pounce. "Remember you need to keep a clear mind. Your anger will only cloud you judgment."

Eugene was barely listening. The only thing he could focus on at the moment was his anger. Ezio finally grab Eugene by his shoulders and forced him to listen.

"GABRIEL! Guardarmi. non perdere di vista. La vendetta non è sempre la risposta. Egli pagherà, io vi prometto che. Ma ho bisogno di mettere a fuoco. Ho bisogno di guardare il quadro generale. Egli otterrà ciò che sta venendo a lui. Prometto. (Look at me. Do not lose sight. Vengeance is not always the answer. He will pay, I promise you that. But I need you to focus. I need you to look at the bigger picture. He will get what is coming to him. I promise).

Eugene finally took a breath and nodded. He knew is father was right. "Non può farla franca con questo (He can't get away with this.)"

"Non lo farà. faremo in modo di esso. (He won't. We will make sure of it.) Go get some rest. We have a long night ahead of us.

Without another word Eugene headed to his room. Ezio took one last look at the note in his hand and crumpled it hard in his fist. He threw it in the fire. He, too, wanted to make Ivan and his men pay for the atrocities he has committed.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Through the shadows six assassins crept their way around the city. They all stayed quiet and moved swiftly among the night. Eugene led the way making sure the way was clear. He was deadly accurate with his bow and arrow taking out guards one by one. No one was the wiser. Ezio brought up the rear making sure no one was following them. Lucas and Rapunzel stayed close to Eugene while the other two assassins contributed in clearing the way with their hidden blades making silent assassinations.

As Eugene took aim with his bow Rapunzel saw in the corner of her eye a guard to their right looking in their direction suspiciously. Without hesitation and with perfect aim she threw a knife and it found its fatal mark. Eugene noticed a body fall out of the corner of his eye. He turned to see Rapunzel with a look in her eyes that he had never seen on her before. It wasn't satisfaction, but it certainly wasn't fear. He knew that look all too well. She was crossing over into the world of reality. Eugene wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing, but at that moment he was glad she didn't hesitate.

They continued on forward to the Doge's Palace. Claudia was right. The palace was crawling with armed Templar guards. Getting in was going to be delicate, but Eugene had a new found confidence that they could do it. They were on the roof of the palace. Guards lurked uncomfortably close. They came to a point where they needed to go one by one. They crouched down behind a chimney wall.

"Ok, Rapunzel, you go first. I will cover you. All you need to do is make it from here to that other chimney wall. You need to stay low and move fast. You think you can do that?"

"No sweat."

"Alright, on my mark."

Eugene waited until one of the nearby guards had turned his back. He didn't want to chance killing the guard for fear the others would hear it and it would blow their cover. "Go." Eugene whispered. Rapunzel did exactly as Eugene instructed and she made it safely undetected. "Ok, Lucas, I'm gonna go next. You wait here, and I will let you know when it is safe. Do not move until I say. Got it?"

"I understand."

Once again Eugene waited until his opportune moment to move. Once it was clear he got down low and ran to where Rapunzel was. Everything was going perfect. Everything was going to plan; they have had no close calls. Eugene's confidence was growing even more. That was until he looked over to the shadow that was moving toward him. He looked to his left and saw Lucas started moving without Eugene giving him the signal. _'What is he doing?' _ Eugene nearly panicked. He carefully looked around the corner to see one of the armed guards take aim with his crossbow.

"Lucas, no!" He tried to yell.

Without thinking Eugene got up ran toward Lucas. He threw himself in front of the arrow that came hurling his direction, pushing Lucas back.

Rapunzel saw Eugene hit the ground hard. She stood up and took aim with her hidden pistol. A flash and a bang and the guard dropped down below his post to the ground. The noise from the shot alarmed all the guards in the area. Within seconds, chaos ensued. They all came rushing toward them. Lucas did his best to get Eugene up. Eugene felt a sharp pain in his ribs. The arrow had planted itself right in his side. Eugene broke part of it off to keep from it pushing any farther inside him. Ezio and the other two assassins did their best taking out each guard, but there was too many. They needed to fall back. Rapunzel was fighting two guards off at once. One came down with his sword. She countered with an upper forearm block and stabbed him with her hidden blade. She instantly turned and threw another knife at a guard pursuing her. She was doing alright for herself, but unfortunately she couldn't fight them all off on her own. A pair of hands grabbed her from behind and pulled her back. Two more were on her to tie her down and dragged her back out of Eugene's sight.

"RAPUNZEL NO!"

Lucas tried to help Eugene up.

"Come on we have to go!"

Eugene continued to struggle to get to Rapunzel.

"No! We're not leaving her!"

By now, the bells rang through the night air. This informed Ivan that the Assassins were on the move and were now being hunted. Every guard in the area was now on the lookout for Ezio and his men.

"Gabriel!" Ezio came to help Eugene. "Gabriel, we have to fall back."

"Rapunzel, we can't leave her! We have to get her!"

"We have to leave now."

Eugene continued to struggle, but it was useless. Ezio was not letting his son go, and Eugene didn't have the strength to fight any longer. He barely had the strength to run. His side burned, and it hurt to breathe. The other two assassins cleared the way for them to get to safety.

They finally were out of range and bells stopped ringing. The guards lost sight of them. Ezio led Eugene and Lucas to Leonardo's villa and banged on his door. Eugene was going limp in his arms. Leonardo opened the door with a candle in his hand.

"Ezio, what happened?"

"Garbiel's been hit. He needs help."

"Here, bring him in here."

Ezio and Lucas nearly carried Eugene to his table and laid him on it. Eugene was barely conscious.

"Gabriel? Gabriel, look at me." Ezio tried to keep him awake.

"That arrow needs to come out." Leonardo explained. "I don't have anything to dull the pain though. You will need to hold him down, it's going to hurt."

Leonardo ripped up some cloth and balled up. He boiled some water and prepared his utensils for surgery.

"Gabriel, here bite down on this." Eugene instinctively did was he was told. His mind was so fogged with pain he wasn't sure what was going on. Ezio grabbed Eugene's hand. He knew Eugene was going to need it.

Ezio did his best to position himself to hold Eugene down. He looked to Leonardo waiting for him to start.

"Alright, get ready."

Leonardo started to remove the arrow. Eugene sucked in his breath hard as pain shot through his side. He bit down hard on the make shift gag. Leonardo continued to dig into his side. Eugene arched up.

"Ezio hold him down!"

Ezio pushed down with his forearm and continued hold his hand. Eugene squeezed his father hand hard, he tried hard not to scream, but the pain was too intense.

"Gabriel, bisogna tenere ancora. (Gabriel, you have to hold still.)"

"I almost got it."

A slight twist and one more pull, the arrow was free. Eugene let out one more muffled scream. Leonardo held a clean towel to his side to stop the bleeding. Exhausted Eugene passed out and his hand went limp.

"It's over, Ezio, he's out. You can let him go. I just need to close the wound." Ezio slowly nodded his head. He walked out and waited in the other room until Leonardo was done.

It wasn't long before Leonardo came out wiping off his hands. Ezio looked to his friend for word on how his son was.

"He's lucky. The arrow was stuck in one of his ribs, but it didn't penetrate all the way through. So his lung wasn't pierced." Ezio nodded in relief. "I closed up the wound. He is going to be sore for a while. But he is on the mend."

"Thank Leonardo." Ezio looked around. That was when he finally noticed. "Where is Lucas?"

* * *

Ivan walked up to Gregor who was once again tied up.

"Why is it, that whenever I entrust you with a task, you never cease to fail me? How is it that Ezio and his men came so close to killing me, but you couldn't even locate where they were hiding?" Ivan sighed. "I'm disappointed Gregor. I trusted you, and you failed me. You lied to me. I don't appreciate people lying to me let alone fail me. I told you that if you failed me, you will beg me to kill you. Unfortunately, I have more important matters to tend to. Therefore I will have to leave you here, and let you contemplate the pain you will be in."

Gregor mumbled in protest through the gag in his mouth, but it was useless. His screams continued to echo down the hall. Ivan relished in the sound as he walked away.

Down the hall sitting in a grand room was Lucas. He had something in his hand, a specific artifact.

"Ah, you do have it." Ivan marveled at the apple.

"I told you I would bring it."

"Good, at least someone around here doesn't fail me. And what of the Assassins, where are they?"

"They are at Leonardo Da Vinci's villa. But their den is at a brothel just at the edge of town."

"Very good." Ivan took a seat on a nearby couch. "I always thought you were just a snot nose brat, but all of that changed when you actually killed your father. I was quite impressed with your vigor. I never knew I could count on a child. My other two couldn't handle such trivial tasks. I am glad I brought you along. I think there are high hopes for you in the future."

"Thank Sir Ivan." Lucas slightly bowed his head.

"Tell me, do they know you have been deceiving them this whole time?"

"No, not yet, Sir. Gabriel Auditore has been injured and Ezio and I brought him to Leonardo da Vinci's villa for medicine. I was able to slip out in the chaos. They probably have figured that I am no longer there by now."

"Hmm, interesting. You say Gabriel is injured." Lucas nodded. "How bad?"

"He took an arrow to the ribs saving me."

"Oh that is perfect, just perfect." A plan was formulating in Ivan's mind. "I want you to go back, do not let on that you are working for me. I want you to bring them back here. We will be ready for them."

"That might be difficult to do."

"Why is that?"

"Well, beings that I was the one who foiled their plan and got Rapunzel kidnapped, Gabriel and Ezio may not trust me. Gabriel already said that if I failed he would personally send me back to England."

Ivan got up and took the apple from Lucas and held it close to his face.

"Well then, I guess you will just have to be more persuasive."

* * *

Eugene woke slowly. His eyes fluttered and adjusted to the darkness of the room. His father was sitting in a chair next to him, head bowed. Eugene wasn't sure if he was praying or sleeping. Eugene shifted, but jarred his wound causing him to slightly gasp.

"Gabriel?"

Ezio poured a glass of water from a pitcher and held Eugene's head up slightly. Eugene choked a little from his throat being so dry.

"How do you feel?"

"I've felt worse. Where's Rapunzel? Did you get her?"

Ezio hung his head slightly and sighed. "No, we didn't."

Eugene clenched his teeth. He took a few deep breaths and attempted to get up.

"Gabriel, what are you doing?" Ezio pushed his son back down. "You are not fully healed yet."

"At this rate Rapunzel will be dead before I am fully healed. I am going after her."

"You can you can barely make it to that door."

"Then I will do my best." Eugene continued to struggle.

"Gabriel, do not argue with me."

"No! I am going after her. I am not leaving her like…"

Eugene caught himself before he could finish his thought, but it was too late. The damage was already done. Ezio looked away. Without another word Ezio stormed out of the room.

"Cazzo (Fuck)."

Eugene cursed himself. It wasn't his intention to hurt his father, he was only angry and scared of losing the one he loves. Eugene carefully got up wincing a few times from the pain. He slowly got dressed and strapped his armor back on. He noticed the brandy sitting on a small table. Eugene took a few gulps and rested for a moment while the alcohol dulled the pain to a low throb. He took a few more deep breaths before heading out to the main hall.

Outside his room he could hear voices. Eugene opened his door and saw Lucas practically in tears. Instantly Eugene felt rage shoot through his body. Before he could register what he was doing, Eugene came forward with a left hook and punched Lucas square in the face.

"WHAT THE HELL DID I TELL YOU, HUH? IT'S YOUR FAULT SHE'S GONE!" Eugene continued to wail on Lucas.

"Gabriel, enough!" Ezio pulled Eugene back, but Eugene continued to fight against him. Ezio had no choice but to put pressure on Eugene's injury. Eugene cried out and went down instantly. He started breathing heavily as Ezio lowered him to the ground leaning him up against the wall.

"I said…enough. Lucas where have you been?"

"I'm sorry I…I got scared, and I ran."

"Where did you run to?"

"Nowhere! I just needed to get out. I'm sorry, I didn't know what to do. I know messed up, I messed up big. I'm sorry." Lucas' voice shook.

"I told you to wait. Why didn't you wait?" Eugene asked between pants.

"I don't know, there was so much going on, I was scared, I thought I saw you tell me to come over. I, I didn't mean it. Please, please don't send me back."

"No, you're going back. As soon as I get Rapunzel back I am sending you straight back. For now you're going back to the den. I told you not to screw up and you didn't listen, now you may have caused Rapunzel's death and damn near mine! You could have killed everyone!"

"Gabriel, if Ivan knows about Rapunzel's power he will not harm her, he needs her. He is not going to kill her. But if you want to go after her now, we don't have time to go back to the den. It is all the way on the other side of town, and we need him right now."

"No, I am not chancing him screwing up again, I don't trust him."

"We don't have a choice. If you want to get her now we have to bring him with us."

"What happened to our other guys?

"I don't know, we got separated. My best guess though, they headed back to the den. I don't know if they know we are here."

Eugene weighed his options. Ezio was right. The den was too far away right now to send Lucas back, and they didn't have the man power. They would need Lucas.

"Fine, but I swear, Lucas, you fuck up again, I won't send you back. I am just going to kill you myself. Got it?" Lucas nodded timidly.

Ezio reached down and helped Eugene up. When Lucas raised his hand for help up, they both just passed him by without a second glance. However, when they passed him by, they didn't notice the snide smirk run across his face. It's seemed he didn't need to do much convincing after all.

* * *

On a table, Rapunzel lay tied down and gagged. She looked around to see if she could figure out where she was but was only able to see right above her. Something was around her neck restricting her movement. Oh how could everything have gone so wrong? The last thing she remembered was watching Eugene fall to the ground and then she remembered someone grabbing her from behind. She figured she was knocked out sometime between fighting and this very moment. She did her best to keep her nerves under control. She had to believe that Eugene was coming for her. She had to keep telling herself that. She repeated Eugene will save her over and over in her mind.

She heard a door open and footsteps coming closer. A man came into her view.

"Good evening, Princess, or should I say good morning?" Sir Ivan walked around to the other side of the table that she lay on. "You are quite the handful. I will admit I was not expecting you to put up such a fight. He certainly trained you well. I have been informed you have a certain…ability, power more or less and I would like to know more about it."

Rapunzel wasn't sure if she should try to lie to him or tell him the truth. If she told him she had lost it years ago, he might kill her. On the other hand if she told him it was through her tears, he might hurt her to gather those tears. Rapunzel did her best not to show fear. He pulled a knife from his robes. Rapunzel's eyes grew wide and her breathing quickened.

"Oh, don't worry, Princess, I am not going to hurt you…too bad. I just want to know how to gather your power, and then I will let you go."

She knew better than to trust him. He may "let her go", but she knew she wouldn't be alive when he "let her go." Ivan removed the gag from her mouth.

"Now, are you going to tell me?" Rapunzel glowered at him. She gritted her teeth and spit in his face. Ivan closed his eyes and wiped his face off casually with the cloth in his hand. "So, we decided we are not going to play nice. Well, I guess we are going to have to do this the hard way."

Ivan shoved the gag back in Rapunzel's mouth. He took the knife and sliced into her arm. Rapunzel sucked in her breath as she felt the cold, harsh metal cut into her. It was a deep gash, and she let out a small cry, But Rapunzel remained strong. She couldn't show her weakness. He removed the gag from her mouth again.

"Now will you tell me?"

He eyes narrowed and grounded her teeth. "Go to hell."

"I don't want to hurt you, Princess, but you leave me no choice." He covered her mouth again and sliced into her other arm.

Rapunzel bit down hard on her gag stifling another cry.

"It is up to you, Princess, you either tell me willingly, or I make you tell me." He removed the gag once more. "This is your last chance. I would hate to destroy that…pretty little face of yours." He brushed his hand across her cheek.

The feeling Rapunzel got was not a feeling of comfort like she did when Eugene when would touch her, but instead she felt disgusted. A chill traveled down her spine as his knuckles softly raked across her skin. She jerked her head away from his touch.

"I'd rather die."

"Well, as much as I would hate to do that, it can be arranged." He took the knife and sliced into her cheek.

Rapunzel did her best, but she couldn't hold up much longer.

Ivan spoke the incantation, but her hair did not glow, nor did her gashes. Instead, he saw the glow come from her tear on her face. He watched as the tear shown on his face. It traveled through her to her injuries and healed her completely.

"Ah, so that's how it works. Thank you, Princess. You have been…very cooperative."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

"So how are we going to get in? Now they know we are trying to get in, and they will be expecting us."

Ezio thought for a moment. It was true. This time was going to be especially difficult and the guards would certainly be doubled for protection

"The last time I infiltrated the Palazzo Ducale, I flew in. Leonardo, would you be able to make another glider, like you did the last time?'

"I could certainly try. However, I don't know how quickly I can make it. It took me months to get the first one right."

"But it only took you about a day to make the second one. Please, Leonardo, this maybe our only way in."

"I will see what I can do." Leonardo left to go to his work shop.

"As for you," Ezio turned to Lucas, "you are not to leave either one of our sights. You do exactly as you are told. Is that understood?"

Lucas nodded.

"Gabriel, do you think you will be able to operate Leonardo's machine?"

"I'll be fine."

Ezio didn't quite believe him, but decided not to push the matter.

"Lucas you and I will do our best to take out as many guards as possible. How good are you with firing a bow and throwing knives." Lucas didn't answer. He only threw a knife straight into the wall and it struck hard with a thud. "Alright then, you will be with me. Make sure you make ever strike count. We will be limited on ammunition. So we cannot afford multiple shots. I think the easiest access will be coming from the south end, so Gabriel, set yourself up on the rooftops in that direction. I will send you a signal to let you know when it is safe. Any questions?"

Lucas shook his head. Eugene didn't answer, but only walked away. Ezio decided to leave him be for now. He knew what Eugene was going through, and no amount of comforting words or lecture would help at the moment. It never did for Ezio.

A few hours later Leonardo came out with a bag full of equipment, and large sheets of rolled-up paper.

"I think I have it. I made a few adjustments, but I will inform you when we get to our location."

Ezio slapped his friend on the back "Thank you Leonardo, I knew I could count on you."

* * *

"So this is really going to work?" Eugene asked.

"It will, I'm sure of it. The last time we did this I figured out that hot air helps make the glider rise higher. So to help give you longer flight, I have built in a torch. When you feel yourself declining, pull this lever and a flame will shoot out. Don't pull it for too long otherwise you will go too high and miss your target. Any questions?" Eugene only shook his head. "Hey," Leonardo gave him a friendly slap on the arm, "you will get her back. Your father won't let you down." But Eugene didn't respond.

Eugene waited on the roof tops waiting for his father's signal. It seemed like hours before it came, but finally, he saw an arrow in flames rise into the sky. That was his cue. He backed up a little to get a running start. Then with one jump the glider caught wind and lifted. It wasn't long before he felt himself lose altitude and he pulled the lever as instructed and he felt himself go higher again. So far his way was clear. Ezio and Lucas did a pretty good job of clearing the way for him.

Suddenly an arrow shot right past Eugene's head. It was so close he felt the wind from it. Eugene started losing control of the glider. He bobbed from side to side trying to balance it back out. He pulled the lever more to try and get himself out of shooting range as best he could, but it wasn't good enough. Another arrow shot past him, only this time it put a hole in the glider's wing. Eugene started losing altitude quickly. Eugene pulled the lever to try and lift himself up, but part of the ripped material from the hole caught on fire.

"Oh shit."

Eugene did his best to keep his head down low so as to not get singed from the flames above. He looked down to try and find a good crash landing area. If he was going to go down in flames he might as well take out a few Templars with him. He begun to pick up speed as the glider started to plummet its way back down. Eugene spotted a watch tower with about three or four guards. If Eugene could just hold on a little longer and keep himself up, he would be able to make it to the watch tower and take them out. Eugene tried to push his legs down onto the bar behind him to make the glider lift up in the front to catch more air. He lifted his upper body as best he could without setting himself on fire to take the weight off the front of the glider. It slowed him down a bit, but it didn't give him the lift he had hoped for. As the watch tower got closer he kept the glider as straight as possible to aim for his target.

Had he been off just a mere inch, Eugene would have missed his target completely.

The guards on the tower watched in absolute terror as a giant flaming…well they weren't sure what it was, came charging at them through the air. They tried to fire at it but were so shaken up by the strange demon like creature they missed their target.

Two of the guards were taken out by the flaming glider. The other two jumped out of the way. They looked around and saw no one.

"Che cosa è stato? (What was that?)" One of the guards asked.

They both walked at opposite ends of the tower trying to see who brought this monstrosity to them.

"Non lo so. il diavolo ha portato questa (I don't know. The devil has brought this-)"

The other guard heard his partner's words abruptly stop and he turned around to find that he was alone. He pulled out his sword, and with a trembling hand, he slowly walked to where his comrade had been standing.

"Non lo so. chi-chi c'è? (Wh-who's there?)"

The guard inched his way to the edge. As he leaned forward to look over the edge, a hand quickly came up to his throat. A blade shot through to the back of his neck and the guard was pulled over the edge of the tower and plunged to the ground with a thud as Eugene kept his hook blade dug into the ledge of the watch tower.

Eugene pulled himself up to safety. He looked around trying to get his bearing. It was a great plan to get inside, but finding Rapunzel was another feat. He didn't have any real clue on where she was being held, however, standing there in one spot wasn't going to find her either.

There was a guy wire that was angled down from the top of the guard wall. He flicked his hook blade out, slid down the wire and rolled to the ground. Eugene kept low and as close to the edge of the wall as possible to keep from being seen. A few hundred feet later he came across another watch tower. He was sure that he would be able to fight his way through the guards, but it might cause someone to eventually notice, and he needed to keep his presence as quiet as possible. Looking toward the edge of the wall, there was a lip that went completely around the watch tower. It wasn't enough to walk on, but it was enough to be able to climb around. He hopped over the wall gripping the edge carefully making his way around. Once he was on the other side, he made sure no one was around, and then climbed back over the wall to continue his pursuit.

Every few hundred feet, Eugene would have to climb over the wall, and inch his way around another watch tower, each time being successful. He had only hoped his father was as successful having to be stuck with Lucas.

Finally, Eugene made it to the palace. Walking through the front door was out of the question, so he looked for a window, or an unlocked back door somewhere. He needed to be extra careful for guards lurking around. He hid in shadows, and ducked into corners, but he wasn't making very good progress. He spent more time waiting until his path was clear, and he still didn't know where Rapunzel was.

Eugene peaked around the corner and saw a guard headed in his direction. Eugene waited in the corner until he was close enough. Before the guard knew what had happened, Eugene grabbed the guard from behind covering his mouth and dragged him into the dark.

Eugene got close to the guard's ear as he pressed him to the wall.

"Stare tranquillo o io farò la tua morte lenta e dolorosa, capito? (Stay quiet or I will make your death slow and painful, understood?)" He growled in a whisper as he flicked his wrist, shooting out his hidden blade. The guard nodded in comprehension. "Dove è il prigioniero ivan ha nascosto? (Where is the prisoner Ivan has hidden?)" Eugene slowly removed his hand from the guards mouth.

"Lo non- (I don't wha-)" Eugene cut him off with his blade pressed hard under the guards chin, and covered his mouth again to muffle the groan.

"Non mentire a me, dov'è? (Don't lie to me, where is she?)" Eugene spoke harshly .

The guard's breath quickened.

"Terza prigione sotto. (Third dungeon below.)" Eugene smiled slightly and tilted his head.

"Grazie. (Thank you.)"

Without another word, Eugene wrapped his other hand behind the guards head, and with a quick twist, snapped the guards neck. He slowly lowered him to the ground to keep from making any loud noise. He started removing the guard's uniform and putting it on over his own clothes. If he wanted to make any progress, he needed to disguise himself. The uniform was a little big but he made do.

Eugene placed the helmet on and walked out from the corner leaving the guard tucked away in the dark. Getting around the palace was a lot easier now that he had a cover, but he knew it wouldn't last. Someone would eventually find the body and he would be found out. Eugene found a set of stairs that led down. He wasn't sure if it was the right direction, but head there anyways. The further he got, the darker it got. There were only a few torches mounted to the wall, but they were so far apart from each other it didn't help much.

Suddenly in the distance, he could hear screams. Eugene's heart dropped and fear nearly took over. He knew those screams. Many times he heard those same terrorized screams in the middle of the night due to a nightmare. Eugene's pace quickened. The screams and cries got louder as he got closer. The up side to hearing Rapunzel's screams was that he knew she was still alive, but for how long he wasn't sure.

He came to a balcony that led to a long winding stair case. He looked down and saw a few guards roving around. He needed to get down there without the possibility of getting questioned. He loaded one of his poison darts into his hidden blade. He took aim and fired. It found its mark and the poison slowly took effect. The guard started losing control of his body. He became delirious and eventually collapsed in a heap. Another guard noticed the fallen man. As soon as he was in Eugene's sights, he fired another dart, hitting the second guard. He waited until the poison finished coursing through the man's veins before Eugene removed the guard's uniform discarding it in a corner and continued on.

He could still hear Rapunzel's cries, but he could not see her.

Eugene climbed down the steps, and made his way between large crates and dividing walls. He came up to another guard, who was clearly not too concerned with what was going on around him. This was perfect opportunity for Eugene. He snuck up behind the lax guard, snaked his hand around to cover the guard's mouth, and plunged his blade into his back silencing the guard instantly. Then Eugene slowly lowered him to the ground, just like the last.

"Avete sentito? (Do you hear that?)"

Eugene heard one of the guards ask.

"Sentire cosa? (Hear what?)" Another guard asked

"Shh."

They both stood in silence waiting to hear something

"Ah, sei pazzo vecchio. (Ah, you're crazy old man.)"

"Ti sto dicendo. Qualcosa non va. (I'm telling you. Something is not right.)"

He didn't get a response from his partner. When he turned around his partner was missing. Terrified, the guard took his sword and started circling himself.

"Alberto, non è il momento di giocare. (Alberto, this is no time to play games.)" Still no response. "Alberto?"

He saw a shadow flash in the corner that made him jump.

"Alberto, e tu? (Alberto, is that you?)" He saw it again in the corner of his eye and he quickly turned in that direction. "Chi è? (Who's there?)" The guard heard a whistle above him and he looked up. Eugene jumped down from his perch landing on top of the guard while simultaneously stabbing the guard through the neck killing him instantly.

Calmly, Eugene stood up and walked away from the bloody scene that he had just created.

Meanwhile, Rapunzel was still strapped down to a table with a gag in her mouth as Grantham continuously struck her. Small vials were corked filled with clear liquid. He struck her multiple times in the face, each blow causing a new level of pain. Every time a tear came out, he would collect it into the vial. Rapunzel tried to be strong, she didn't want to cry. Not because she wanted to remain strong, but because the more she cried the more of her power they would collect. But the longer it took for her to cry, the harder Grantham or Ivan would hit her, or cut her, or whatever other type of torcher they could inflict upon her.

"Scream all you want, Princess, no one can hear you." Grantham snarled. "I am sorry to say that no one is coming for you." For a moment Grantham stopped. He sighed and stretched out his limbs and arched his back, as if he was the one under a stressful situation.

Rapunzel squeezed her eyes shut to keep from letting another tear run down her cheek. When she opened her eyes she saw Grantham staring at her. She wasn't quite sure but it seemed as though he was looking at her differently. His eyes ran the length of her.

"Ivan may enjoy watching others in pain, but that's not what I enjoy." Grantham looked at Rapunzel lustfully. His fingers slowly trailed the contour of her leg working his way up to the inside of her thigh. "I enjoy something…much rarer around here." Rapunzel started to shake. Grantham took off his glove and softly rubbed the inside of her right thigh. "I prefer…a woman's touch. But you are not just any woman. You are the Princess of Corona; untouched, unspoiled. Do you have any idea how exceptional that is?"

His hand moved underneath her garb to her bare stomach. He bent down and forced himself upon her lips. Rapunzel did her best to struggle away but she was strapped down tight. So instead she did the next best thing. Rapunzel opened her mouth and bit down hard on his face. Grantham screamed and she didn't let go until she drew blood.

"You bitch! You little whore!"

Grantham raised his hand up for another strike, but before he his fist came down again, an arrow hit him in the shoulder. Grantham stumbled back as he cried out. Eugene came out from the dark, bow and arrow in hand ready to strike.

"You take one more move, Grantham, and you will be dead before you can take your next breath." Grantham hesitated. Then Eugene lowered the aim of his bow slightly and fired. Grantham cried out again as he fell back clutching the bloody wound in his thigh. "There, now you can't go anywhere."

"Go ahead, kill me, I know you want to."

Eugene though for a moment. "Not yet. I have some questions."

"What makes you think I will tell you anything?"

Eugene knelt down close to his ear and whispered. "Because if you don't…I will make the last few minutes of your pathetic life a living fucking hell. And I know a thing or two about pain." Eugene looked dead into Grantham's eyes and smirked. "Mm-kay?"

Eugene got up and started untying Rapunzel and removed the gag from her mouth. "Can you move?"

She nodded her head. He helped her off the table. She started to shake uncontrollably. Eugene held her close.

"I gotcha, it's ok, it's over." Rapunzel clung to Eugene for dear life not wanting to let go. "You're ok, it's over sweetheart." He stiffened slightly as he felt the pull on his wound as her arms tighten around his waist. She lightly sobbed into his chest and took in some deep breaths to take hold of her emotions. After a few shaky breaths Rapunzel let go and wiped her tears.

He unsheathed his sword and handed it to Rapunzel.

"Take this, if he tries anything, kill him." Rapunzel took the sword and held it towards Grantham's face. Grantham cautiously looked toward the tip of the blade and then to Rapunzel.

Eugene circled around Grantham.

"You hovered over Daniel and his kingdom for years, why?"

"I don't know" Grantham mumbled. Eugene didn't like the answer, so he twisted the arrow that was still stuck in his leg."Ahh! Alright! He gave Rapunzel away to Gothel."

"Yes, I already know that. What were you waiting for?"

"Opportunity, Gothel double crossed us."

"How?" Grantham's eyes narrowed

"Piss off, Assassino." Eugene pushed the arrow in deeper into Grantham's leg. Again Grantham cried out in pain. "Alright," he panted, "Gothel locked Rapunzel and herself in that tower. She said that if we even come near her or the child, she would expose us to the Assassins and to Ezio. So Ivan was angry and blamed the king. To be able to keep his kingdom and his wife alive, Daniel agreed to let Ivan run the kingdom in secret. All the trade, all the businesses, all profits went straight to Ivan. Anything Daniel needed, he had to get from Ivan. But then you came along with the princess and started snooping around where you shouldn't have."

"And you made him come after me."

"Ivan threatened to kill both Rapunzel and his wife if he didn't. We were going to frame him, but he died before we could get to him."

"So, why not just kill him, and take over the kingdom?"

"Daniel had a bargaining chip. Something about a codex."

Eugene remembered that Daniel had kept it. How did he get that codex page anyway? Eugene was going to ask him another question, but before he could Rapunzel apparently had heard enough, and was about to drive the sword into his chest. Eugene reacted and stopped her.

"No, no, no. Not like this." He held her with the sword still in hand. "Ok, Rapunzel, let go, let go."

Eugene coaxed her away from the sword and pulled her back to the table. He removed the sword and re-sheathed it. He held her tight trying to calm her down. Rapunzel shook so hard from pain, fear, and just plain anger in his arms that one might think she was seizing. Eugene lifted her chin and saw the bruising on her face. Her eye was already turning shades of blue and purple, her bottom lip was cracked and dried with blood, and her arms were covered in large gashes and more dried blood. He held her to his chest and clenched his jaw.

"I'm so sorry, Rapunzel." He whispered. "I should have never let you do this."

"It was my decision." She looked up at Eugene.

"But-"

"No, it was my choice. That's it. I knew the consequences. I knew what could have happened. You can't protect me all the time."

Eugene kissed her on the forehead. "Head up towards the stairs and stay there." She looked at Eugene. "Go, I'll be there in a minute."

Rapunzel made her way around, but before she left, she took a look at the vials filled with her tears. She took them all off the table and smashed them on the ground, ridding them of their contents.

Eugene waited until she was out of sight or so he thought. He walked back over to Grantham and knelt down. Grantham was barely alive. He shot out his hidden blade and ended Grantham's life.

Grantham's eyes were still slightly open. Eugene took his forefinger and ring finger and closed them.

"Requiescat in pace (Rest in peace)." He whispered

Rapunzel watched Eugene. He seemed so different now that she knew the truth, like he was a completely different person. She wasn't sure if she would ever look at him the same ever again. She wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Rapunzel liked who Eugene was when…well after she got to know him a little better, not quite when she first met him. He was arrogant, rude, and he could be just down right mean sometimes, fooling her into the Snuggly Duckling, and trying to make her feel guilty about leaving her mother. But in the end it had actually worked out. She found her real mother _and_ father, and the Snuggly Duckling thugs became their friends. That was the Eugene she really fell in love with. Would he ever be the same to her after this? Of course, _she_ would never be the same after this. Rapunzel had actually killed someone now, taken a life, more than one. That was something she thought she would never have to do. She never thought she would never have it in her, and it scared her to death. Would she eventually turn into Gothel? Gothel took Eugene's life, and in a metaphorical way, took her life too, for eighteen years. No, she couldn't think like that. Rapunzel took someone's life out of pure survival. Gothel did it for selfish needs. But then again, would pure survival be considered selfish? After all, Gothel was also just trying to survive, even if it was five hundred years after the normal life expectancy of a human being.

This was all so confusing, she needed to focus. Rapunzel needed to think about how to get out of here and stay alert to stay alive.

"Let's go." Eugene grabbed Rapunzel's hand and led her up the stairs.

They needed to move fast. Eugene was sure somebody knew by now that they were here. How could they not with the trail of corpses Eugene left behind, and one missing his clothes.

Eugene and Rapunzel made it to the main corridor of the palace. Everything seemed to be going smoothly, too smoothly according to Eugene. There was no one around. Not even one guard. This made Eugene even more on edge. This wasn't normal.

Eugene then felt the floor rumbling. It got louder and louder. Then he heard the clank of metal and armor. He knew what it was.

"Go, run!" He yelled.

Rapunzel and Eugene took off in one direction. They got to a set of stairs but were abruptly stopped by another large group of Templar guards blocking their exit. They turned to go the opposite direction only to be stopped by the group of Templars that had been following them.

Eugene and Rapunzel stood back to back guarding each other from all directions as best they could ready to fight. He had to think quickly. He looked around for the nearest useful exit that was being blocked by and angry mob.

"Gabriel!"

Eugene looked to his left above to see his father out a window. Ezio looked like he was about to throw something inside. Eugene grabbed Rapunzel and headed toward the window. Ezio threw what was in his hand and as it hit the ground it exploded releasing mass amounts of smoke. They were able to make it out of the window in time before any one was able to follow them. The only problem was the window was right at the ledge of the guard wall. Had they not been careful, they would have toppled right over. Once they got around to the wall there was another group of guards waiting for them. Eugene looked over his shoulder to the other side of the wall.

"There's gotta be at least fifty may be sixty guards."

"Alright, I will create a diversion. Wait until it is clear, and then get Rapunzel out of here. We will meet up at the north end. I have Lucas there with some horses waiting." Ezio said

"Ok."

"Here," Ezio handed Eugene a few grenades, "these might be useful."

Eugene took them and put them in one of his pouches around his belt. "Thanks."

Ezio headed in the opposite direction. Eugene waited with Rapunzel quietly to hear the diversion. A few minutes later he heard an explosion and then the guards ran to the noise.

"That's our cue."

They climbed to the inside of the wall. There was guard tower that blocked their path.

A small group of guards lagged behind the rest and caught Eugene and Rapunzel.

"Hey Assassino! Assassino!" One cried out.

They turned and started running after Eugene and Rapunzel. Eugene looked quickly and saw a pulley that led to the top of one of the guard towers. They ran up to the platform.

"Hold onto me." Eugene instructed.

Rapunzel held on tight around his waist. With one hand Eugene held tight to the rope and with the other, he got out one of his grenades. He kicked the plate and it released a weight on the other side causing them to fly up to the top of the guard tower. Eugene threw the grenade down as they rode up. Only this time it wasn't smoke that came out. There was another explosion with fire and shrapnel. It took out most of the guards and left the rest severely injured.

Eugene and Rapunzel made it safely to the other side of the guard tower with no guards in sight so far as they continued on.

They made it finally to the rendezvous point, but there was one problem. Eugene and Rapunzel were up on top of one of the many watch towers that surrounded the palace and they needed to get down and fast. They couldn't climb down to one of the entrance gates. There were too many guards at each entrance. Eugene looked around for a solution. A little ways away there was a large pile of hay at the bottom.

"Ok, were gonna have to jump."

"What!"

"C'mon, Blondie, you've jumped before. Don't tell me you're getting cold feet now."

"Yeah, but I had my hair, and I never had to jump straight to the ground before."

"You're not, you will being jumping into a pile of hay. You remember when you saw me jump?"

"Yeah."

"I was fine though, right?"

"Kinda."

"Well this is exactly what I did. Just follow my lead and you will be fine. I promise."

"Ok." Rapunzel wasn't so sure, but she trusted Eugene.

"Now when you jump, dive straight down. Then about half way down, which comes really fast, you are going to flip yourself under so you can land on your back. That way you don't land on your head and snap your neck." Rapunzel gave him a cautious look. "You'll be fine. Consider this your last test, the Leap of Faith."

"I don't know about this." She said shakily as she got to the edge.

Guards suddenly came from all directions.

"Well you gotta be we have to go." Eugene started firing at the guards with his bow.

"Uh, Eugene?"

"Go, Blondie, jump."

"Oh God."

"GO!" With a yelp Rapunzel swan dived to the bottom. Eugene followed right behind. They both landed with a thud.

"You alright?" Eugene asked.

"Ugh, I think so."

"Come on, we gotta get up."

"GABRIEL!"

Eugene looked up from the hay stack to see his father jumping and about to land right where he was lying. Eugene rolled over as fast as he could so he wouldn't get landed on.

There was another explosion right after Ezio had landed and a few guards fell over the side of the wall and hit the ground hard with a splat.

"Let's go!"

Lucas had been waiting out of sight with four horses ready to go. They all managed to escape unscathed for the most part and rode out to the safety of their den.


End file.
